Return to Shamballa
by Asj Johnson
Summary: Post movie. Four years after they leave Amestris, Al talks Ed into returning. It isn't until after the brothers are back in Resembool that Ed begins to wonder what they had to give up in exchange. Meanwhile, Mustang talks Ed into rejoining the military.
1. Alchemy and Growth Spurts

**Chapter One: Alchemy and Growth Spurts**

Together, a right and left hand reach toward the ceiling of a room, but the right hand's fingertips reach no farther than the bases of the left fingers.

Ed stares up at his hands as he says, "What am I going to do, Al? People are starting to notice."

Entering the bedroom, Al glances toward the blond ponytailed man laying on the bed. "Well, look on the bright side. You're 22 now, so you probably won't get any taller."

Ed sighs. "For once, I guess that _would_ be a bright side... My leg's the worst off. I don't know how long until people ask me why one shoe's a few inches taller than the other." Ed smiles a little, finding the thought funny in a way.

"You should have gotten them replaced years ago," Al tells him.

"I know, but Winry's automail is better than anything in this world."

"Do you think we can find Winry's double, brother?" Al asks as he sits down in a chair close to Ed's bed.

Ed shakes his head. "She probably has a different name; may live in another country. Besides, I doubt she'd know anything about automail, since it doesn't exist in this world." Ed pushes himself off the bed and walks over to his desk. He picks up a piece of metal piping he had been using as a paperweight and examines it. "This would probably be enough material to fix my leg..." Ed says as he peals down part of the covering on his left leg to reveal the automail. "If alchemy existed in this universe."

Al widens his eyes as he jumps out of the chair. "But brother! Didn't Eckhart open the gate on this side? That means she used alchemy!"

Ed shakes his head. "I think Envy was what made it work, and he's gone now. I guess I'll just have to find some type of replacement... I hate _again_ settling for something inferior to Winry's handiwork, though..." Ed says as he sits down at the desk and picks up a stack of papers he needs to look through.

"Um... I'm sure we can find something _almost_ as good," Al says.

"Ow..." Ed mumbles. He puts his left index finger in his mouth. "Stupid paper cut..." he grumbles.

"Well, Ed...? Will you look around town today and see if you can find anything?" Al had said something before that, but Ed didn't catch it, being too focused on his finger.

"Look, Al," Ed says as he clasps his hands in front of his face. "I have to sort through these bills today. We're behind on our payments as it is. There's not enough money for replacement limbs. Maybe next month, okay?" Ed knows he was the one that brought it up, but he hadn't planned on discussing it all day long.

"Wait... how'd we get behind on the bills?"

"I don't know..." Ed moans. He narrows his eyes when hearing a rumbling sound, glaring at Al. Al blushes as he puts a hand over his stomach. "Sometimes I wish you were still stuck in a suit of armor. At least then, you didn't have to eat."

"Brother! I can't be the only reason we're behind on the bills!" Al exclaims.

"...Well, it _did_ cost a lot to fix the sink. That new pipe took more than both of us make in a year... I wish they could have just reattached the _old_ pipe."

"Then you wouldn't have a paperweight," Al tells him with a slight smirk.

Being reminded of papers, Ed glances back toward the looming stack of bills sitting in front of him. He starts to feel upset about their financial situation and says, "Sometimes I wish I could just..." and slams his hands down on the desk. All of a sudden, the papers are gone and there's a burnt spot on the desk where they used to be. Ed blinks in surprise. (I'm picturing background music starting here, by the way)

"Ed! What'd you do?" Al asks in amazement.

"Uh... I don't know," Ed replies with wide eyes.

"You used _alchemy_, Ed!"

"I did?"

"_Yes_! You deconstructed the matter of those papers! You made an incomplete transmutation!"

"But I _needed_ those papers!" Ed cries.

"Forget about the papers and try transmuting something else! Uh..." Al glances around the room. He points as he says, "That! Transmute your chair!"

Ed stands and looks at his chair. He shakes his head and sighs. "Al, this isn't going to work. The papers was just a fluke. - A freak accident."

"Ed, just try it," Al orders.

"Fine. Here it goes..." Ed claps and touches the chair. It transmutes into a block of wood. "It worked?"

"Now you can transmute your leg!" Al says and points toward Ed's paperweight.

"Hey, you're right!" Ed replies with a grin. He uses the pipe to extend his leg. "It's not great, but it'll do," Ed says as he wiggles his toes to test it out.

"Hey, Ed... How would you like to have a _real_ maintenance job done? I'll bet we can get back to our world, now that you can use alchemy again... I'll bet Winry would be glad to see us."

"Huh?"

"C'mon, brother, don't tell me you don't want to go back home," Al says.

"I don't really care where we live," Ed says with a shrug. "Nothing's in this world to keep me here, but the same is true about the other world."

"Ed, you can't be serious! I'm happy that I'm with you, but if we can go home and see Winry and everyone else again, I'd jump at the chance!"

"I don't know... Hitler will be getting out of prison in a year... We should make sure he doesn't start a second world war or something..."

"No one's going to listen to him anymore, brother!"

"You know there's still a lot of people that think he's right, Al! Especially that guy who killed your double..."

"Even if he _does_ try to start something, it can't amount to much after we got rid of that Uranium bomb!"

"Okay, okay. If you're so set on going back to Amestris, I can't say no. The thing is, even _with_ alchemy, I don't think we can open a portal to our world. Don't you remember what happened last time? It took forever to close that gate!"

"But, that was because I opened it at the same time! If no one's opening it on the other side, it will close after we go through!"

"You don't know that," Ed states. "And another thing... You had to use Wrath and Gluttony to open the gate, while our father and Envy were used on this side. - There's no homunculi on this side of the gate anymore, and we're not going to sacrifice someone's life."

Al seems to sink as he loses his excitement. After a second, though, he gets a determined look in his eyes. "There must be another way, Ed! What about how you got on this side of the gate in the first place? How did it happen _then_?!"

"Don't you remember, Al? You used the stone to bring me back to life. Then I brought _you_ back with myself. ...I didn't even expect to be alive after that."

"Oh... I forgot..." Al looks away.

"But there _was_ that other time... When Dante sent me to the other side."

Al's eyes light up.

"She said something about babies being able to call forth the gate. I think she used Rose's baby to open the gate the first time I saw this world."

"And I know for a fact that Rose's baby was fine afterward, so now we know a way to open the gate without sacrificing anyone!" Al says happily.

"My body stayed at the gate that first time, so it might work differently. Besides, I don't know if the same thing applies to babies in this dimension or not."

"There's only one way to find out... Let's go see Officer Hughes and Gracia!"

"What?! Al, we can't experiment with their son!" Ed exclaims, but Al grabs his hand and runs out of the room with him.

---

"Hello, Officer Hughes," Al greets when Hughes answers the door.

"Hi, Al. What are you boys doing here?"

"We just thought we'd drop by for a visit," Al replies with a smile.

"But if you're busy, we can go back home and leave you alone," Ed adds, hoping that's the case.

"Don't be silly, Ed! You two are _always_ welcome here." Hughes gestures for them to enter the house as he says, "I hope you don't take this the wrong way, Al, but it's amazing how much you're beginning to resemble Alfons Heiderich..."

"Uh... That's okay," Al insists, waving his hands. He and his brother have yet to tell them that they're not from this world, and they'd rather _not_ tell them, either.

"Hmm..." Hughes says, wondering what Al's hiding. "Oh! You won't believe how much Erich has grown... I'll go get him!"

"No wait! That's not necessary!" Ed begs as Hughes runs off.

Ed and Al begins to hear crying and a woman saying, "Honey no! He was napping!"

"This will be easy..." Al whispers to Ed, a smirk on his face.

---

"I can't believe he actually trusted us alone with him..." Ed grumbles as he stares at the baby he's holding at arm's length.

"Why not? We helped Gracia deliver him on your last birthday. - They trust us with his life."

"They shouldn't..." Ed mumbles to himself.

"Don't worry! Everything'll be fine!" Al says with a big smile.

Ed sighs. "Fine... Let's get on with it." Al nods and Ed sits Erich on the couch. He claps, touches him, and... nothing happens.

"Ed, you didn't do it right! Clap and try again!" Al orders.

"What do you mean I didn't do it right!?" Ed exclaims.

"If you did it right, it would have opened the gate!"

"Al, look... I don't think I can do alchemy anymore. What happened in our apartment wasn't permanent."

"Before you jump to conclusions, try using alchemy on something else," Al begs. Ed claps and touches the floor. He then shakes his head, although it's obvious that it didn't work.

--End Chapter--

Anyone wanna tell me what they think?

The title is (as you probably know) from the movie. I think Shamballa was supposed to be a make-believe paradise or something, and not Ed's world (although I could be wrong...). But, I was thinking about so many happy things happening in this story, I thought it was a nice title (although, I may come up with a real plot later...).

So... After watching the movie, and seeing this little known fact in the booklet that came with the movie about Hitler going to jail for five years before starting World War II, I thought I should have something about that in the chapter. Ed's kind'a joking about Hitler starting a second world war, by the way - he has no idea it will happen.

Ed's a boy, so he'd probably keep growing after age 18... I was wanting to make him about three inches taller, but if I made his arm and leg three inches longer, the rest of his body parts would probably grow three inches, too, and that'd make him too tall... But, I don't know for sure, so I didn't change it.

Hughes' comment on Al looking like the other Al is also based on the movie. I don't remember if it was in the booklet or on the disc, but it was mentioned that Alfons was designed to look like an older Alphonse. So, Al should look a little like his double, now that he's physically 17... Hey, that's the same age Alfons was... I didn't realize that Al was that age until now. I think he'd still look different, though, since Alfons isn't Al...

I changed Hughes' baby into a boy. Heh... It just seemed like too much of an coincidence for him to have a girl with the same name, so I thought I'd give him a boy with a somewhat similar name. But, Ed and Al still got to help Gracia deliver him, during a party for Ed's 22 birthday. This time, they weren't so... weird acting, by the way (a decade should make Ed more mature, right?).

Now... I have so many ideas for this story's upcoming chapters, but I'm not sure how easy I can write them or how much free time I'll have to do so, so... I'm thinking I may update it weekly, possibly every other week.

Note: I went back and changed Eric's name to Erich, because Erich is a German name.


	2. Another Try

**Chapter Two: Another Try**

Ed and Al are laying outside, staring up at the cloudless night sky. "Heh. Al, when I first got stuck in this world, I thought I could leave if I could make it out of the atmosphere. How wrong I was... Now, because of that Hubble guy's recent discovery, we know that there's large groups of stars up there - _galaxies_ - farther than the eye can see, and larger and more distant than anyone can imagine. So, even if I _could_ return to our world by leaving the boundaries of this universe, by the time I'd reach the end of the universe, I'd be long dead from old age - and so would my great-grandchildren, and _their_ great-grandchildren..."

"Ed! Don't talk that way!"

"What?" Ed asks, turning his head toward Al.

"We're going to get back to our own world. I'm going to figure out how you used alchemy yesterday morning and then we'll talk Officer Hughes into letting us baby-sit again," Al says determinedly.

"And... Just _how_ are you going to go about figuring out how I used alchemy?" Ed asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Well... We could start by going over exactly what happened..."

"I touched the desk is what happened, Al," Ed says with narrowed eyes. "I do that everyday, and it never blew anything up before."

Al sighs at his brother's reluctance. "What happened _before_ you touched the desk?"

"We were arguing over automail and I was trying to take care of the finances, then- Hey, _you_ were there! Why do I have to tell you what happened?!" Ed asks, sitting up so he can look directly at his brother.

"Because I might have missed something. Just keep going," Al urges.

"Uh... Well, I guess I must have put my hands together while I was talking to you and I touched the desk. That's it," Ed says with a shrug.

"You were pretty upset about all of those bills, weren't you?" Al asks.

"Well, yeah. Especially after I got that paper cut. But I get upset with things all the time and they usually don't _incinerate _when I touch them."

"What about the paper cut?"

"What _about_ the paper cut?"

"Maybe that could have something to do with it," Al tells his brother.

"Now that I think about it... Remember when you attached your soul to one of those suits of armor that came through the gate? When I found that transmutation circle Eckhart was trying to use, it reacted and dumped that armor in front of me. The thing is... I cut my cheek when sneaking inside the building."

Al begins smiling as he sets up and reaches into his pocket. "See, I _told_ you I'd figure out how you did it."

"Al, you don't know that's how it happened!" Ed exclaims.

"Oh, c'mon, Ed! It won't hurt to test the hypothesis!"

"It _will_ if you cut my finger off!"

Al looks at the pocketknife he's holding up to Ed's hand and he smiles embarrassedly. "Uh... I guess _you_ could make a little cut, yourself..."

Ed swipes the knife from Al's hand and throws it as far as he can. "You idiot. I'm afraid of shots and you think I'd prick my finger with a _knife_?"

"My knife!" Al cries. "That knife was expensive!"

"Expensive?" Ed asks. "Why didn't you tell me?! I could have sold it to help pay the bills!"

---

"Okay, so you were right," Ed admits. It's the next morning and there's several things scattered over the floor, and equally many things missing...

"My finger still hurts! Why did _I_ have to test it?!"

Ed shrugs. "Your idea, your knife, _your_ responsibility."

"Well, at least now I can convince you to try getting Officer Hughes to let us baby-sit again..."

"I guess the best thing to do is see if Noah will help us..." Ed says.

"Huh?"

"If it works, we can't just leave Erich home alone, Al. Noah already knows about our world, and now that she has a home where she feels she belongs, she won't try to sneak to the other side. Now... I'm going to try opening the gate one more time, but if it doesn't work this time, you have to promise me that you won't bug me about it again."

Al thinks about it for a second, then nods. "Okay."

After picking up Noah, Ed drives to Hughes' place while Al sits in the back and tells her the details.

_'Is our blood really the key to using alchemy in this dimension?'_ Ed wonders as he glances at his brother in the rearview mirror. _'Could it really be that simple? If so, why hasn't anyone on this side of the gate discovered it by now? Or... Maybe it only works for me and Al. Our bodies are from the other side, so maybe when we came to this side, we brought a part of our world back with us. It could explain some things... When I fixed that transmutation circle Eckhart was trying to use, I might have gotten some blood on my hands from the cut on my cheek. When the gate opened and allowed me to go back to my world, Dad's blood may have been what activated the circle. Even Envy... He was from my side of the gate, so it may have been his blood that Eckhart was able to use that first unsuccessful attempt she made. Did I have any blood on my hands when Al and I were finally able to close the gate? ...I can't help but be curious. - What if we _can_ go back to our side? If I don't try it now, it will haunt me for the rest of my life. Every time I think about Winry, or anyone else on the other side, I'll wonder if I gave up my chance at seeing them again.'_

When getting to Hughes', Al tells the man that it'd be nice if he surprised Gracia with dinner at a fancy restaurant.

"Well... There was _one_ restaurant..." Hughes recalls. "It specializes in the finest French cuisine and all the waiters have nasally accents!" he says enthusiastically. "Every time I drive past it, I imagine the day I'll take Gracia there! She will be so happy and say 'Oh Maes, you do the greatest things for me! I love you so much, let's go home and have another baby!' But... That is, if I ever get enough money..." Hughes seems to deflate as he comes back to reality.

Al takes this as his cue to pull out a large wad of bills. "Don't worry, Officer Hughes. It'll be our treat," Al says with a wink.

"Al, I don't know what to say... Are you sure you don't need this money?" Hughes asks. As Al nods his head, Ed stands behind his brother frantically waving his hands for Hughes to give it back. Hughes doesn't notice Ed, though. "Well, the baby-" Hughes begins to say.

"We'll baby-sit Erich for you, no problem. He's so well-behaved, he's a real joy to be around," Al tells him.

"Yes, I guess you're right. He _is_ an angel, isn't he?" Hughes brags. Al fakely smiles in response. "I guess I'll go get Gracia. With all this money, I can buy her a new evening dress to wear at the restaurant," he says as he goes to find his wife. A minute later, he drags her out of the house, waving to Ed, Noah, and Al, while at the same time trying to convince his wife that she'll love his surprise.

"Good ol' Hughes..." Al says while closing the door.

"Al, was that all the money we had?!" Ed shrieks.

"But, Brother, we won't need it anymore. We're going back to the other side of the gate, remember?" Al says meekly. Ed's eye starts twitching.

"...Are you two sure this is going to work? We can't use alchemy on this side of the gate, so wouldn't that mean we don't have a portion of the gate inside us?" Noah asks. Having seen Ed's mind, she knows that Ed was once told that everyone has the gate inside of them.

"I don't know - which is why we should've kept that money in case it doesn't work, _Al_," Ed says and throws a look toward his brother. "A lot of people from _my_ side of the gate have alternate versions of themselves living on _this_ side... So, our worlds are tied together - _we_ are tied to our alternates. Al even told me once that, when he was on the other side of the gate, he could see me and his double while asleep. So, if people on my side have a gate inside them, I would think the ones on this side would, too. That might be what links us."

"So... What happens now?" Noah asks.

"I'll cut my finger and try calling the gate using Erich," Ed says. Al hands him his knife, but just before cutting his finger, he says, "Wait a minute..." He glances around the room and finds a marker lying on a table. "I think Dante drew a transmutation circle to call the gate. But... since we're trying to go _back_ to our side instead of come here, the array may need to be modified," he says as he begins to draw a circle on Erich's stomach. The baby wiggles slightly. "Don't worry... I won't let anything happen to you," Ed tells the baby.

Noah watches in curiosity as Ed pricks a finger, claps his hands, and touches the baby. The transmutation circle activates and the gate appears before the three of them. The heavy doors reluctantly begin to squeak open. Noah looks on with a hopeful face as bright light comes from the inside. She told Ed and Al that she was happy now, that she finally had a home. She was lying. She did have a place to stay, however, she didn't feel as though she could call it a true home. But, as her eyes adjusts to the light, she gasps and runs out of the room. The horrible sight, those thousands of eyes staring at her, will haunt her for the rest of her life. Tears begin to run down her face, and she begins to hear crying from the other room. She isn't sure if she has the courage to reenter the room to comfort the baby.

---

Ed opens his eyes and sits up, fighting off the dizzy spell trying to overtake him. He turns to his right to see his brother, also sitting up and looking dazed. "How'd we get here?..." Ed asks. It suddenly comes back to him. Went to get Noah, then on to Hughes' house, waved as him and Gracia left the house for a date Al had suggested, tried opening the gate using Erich, gate opens, and they appear on a sidewalk in Central.

"Brother, we're back!" Al says joyfully.

"Yeah... It actually worked..." Ed says in disbelief.

"...Now what?"

"Well, I guess you want to head for Resembool, huh, Al?" Ed asks with a slight smile.

"Should you tell Mustang you're back, first?"

"Why should I? After six years of absence, I'm probably not considered an officer anymore. Besides, when I left, I was on the military's most wanted list, remember?"

Al nods. "But, after the fall of King Bradley, the charges were dropped."

"Frankly, I don't care."

--End Chapter--

First off, from my History of the Universe class, I heard something about Hubble finding out about there being other galaxies around 1924 or so. (The teacher also mentioned alchemists during one class, but didn't go into it, just saying that the alchemists ended up becoming chemists because of some discoveries or something) Should I begin putting numbers like (1) in the story so I can refer you to stuff like this? I've seen some people doing that and I might begin to, if anyone wants me to.

I'm thinking that Ed was able to activate that transmutation circle in the movie because of Envy, as well as that cut, but... they never actually said that, so I can just say that Ed never got cut and clapped his hands any other time. He's from the other side of the gate, so maybe he brought back the ability with him. (shrugs)

Hope the knife thing wasn't going too far... I don't want to encourage anyone to start cutting themselves, thinking they'll go to Ed's world...

By the way, did I mention that I'm doing this in present tense? It's been awhile since I did a story in present tense... It took me a little while to get used to it again.

I've seen Noah's name spelled as Noa, also, but in the movie, they have it written as "Noah" and I'm more used to spelling the name that way, anyhow.


	3. Home Again

**About the footnotes: **In the story, when seeing (#) at the end of a line, highlight the last several words you've read (with the mouse), then go over to the scrollbar, click (and hold down) on the bar (not the track or the arrows) and go to the bottom of the page - without letting go of the mouse button. After reading the corresponding note, move the mouse cursor to the opposite side of the screen, until the page jumps back up to the highlighted text. If it doesn't work, just scroll back up until finding the highlighted text. (That's the method I've been using when reading others' footnotes.)

**Chapter Three: Home Again**

The continual rattling of the train keeps Al from dozing off for more than a second at a time. _'We should have spent the night at Central and took a train in the morning...'_ He has the window seat and turns to his right to see almost-indiscernible trees zooming by in the darkening sky. Seeing nothing inspiring, he glances toward his brother, who's head is bobbing with the motion of the train, apparently fast asleep in the seat beside his. He stares longingly at Ed's sleeping form for a moment, wishing he could also get some rest, then a smirk spreads across his face. Al shoves his brother into the aisle.

A passenger a few rows back widens his eyes slightly, the ponytailed man falling from his seat looking somewhat familiar to him.

Ed opens his eyes as he hits the floor. "Huh?" He groggily looks around before getting back in his seat. "Guess I fell asleep... Train must'a ran over something for a bump that big..." Al shrugs his shoulders and glances out the window.

_'Was that the Fullmetal Alchemist?'_ Sergeant Major Fuery wonders. He wipes his glasses off, although he doubts he'll get another look. The Fullmetal Alchemist, Edward Elric, worked under Mustang for several years. Ed wasn't around much, but he's seen the teen on several occasions, and, actually, got hurt by him twice - once by being punched out, once by getting shot. He knows Ed was a good person, though. Fuery makes a mental note to himself to get a good look at the man later, or at least see where he'll get off the train. Unfortunately, he forgets.

---

Ed steps off the train, holding his brown jacket over one shoulder. He smiles as he looks around, feeling refreshed and ready to begin the new day. Al follows behind him, holding his back.

"Is it just me or was that train ride rougher than usual?" Al asks.

"Hm? I thought it was okay," Ed replies.

"How can you say that?! It was terrible!"

Ed smirks. "I seem to have gotten used to it over the years. But, I guess _you_ didn't, being in a suit of armor for five years and all..."

"That's no fair!" Al exclaims.

"What's no fair is how you couldn't feel any pain while _I_ had to suffer!"

"Brother... It wasn't my choice..."

Ed realizes that he had gone too far. "I'm sorry, Al. I know pain wasn't the only thing you couldn't feel... It must have been terrible..." Ed briefly wonders if Al's situation would have been similar to having all of his limbs being automail.

"It's okay," Al says. "Let's go see Winry. I'll bet she'll be glad to see us again." The brothers leave the train station, eager to meet their old friend again.

Ed knocks on the Rockbell's front door while Al stands behind him.

"Coming!" they hear a girl yell from inside. There's some clanging noises and the brothers smile slightly.

"Guess she was in the middle of something," Ed tells his brother.

A few seconds later, Winry opens the door as she says, "Sorry I took so long. May I help y- Ed!" She yells, wide-eyed. She's wearing a bandana over her hair and holding a screwdriver and a wrench in one gloved hand.

"Sorry if we interrupted something important," Al says.

"Huh? Oh, no, I wasn't busy at all. Really," Winry tells the two of them, but it's obvious that she's lying. "I thought the two of you were never coming back! What happened? Is there going to be another attack?!"

"No, it's nothing like that," Al assures her. "We just thought it was about time we came home."

"Oh, Al..." she says, beginning to get teary-eyed.

"And, I need some work done," Ed says, surprising Winry by pushing his right arm in her face.

"I should inform you... Our prices have gone up - and you still owe me for that last set," Winry tells him with a smirk.(1)

"But we don't have any money. Al gave it all to Hughes before we left."

"Then I guess you'll just have to work it off," Winry says and laughs evilly. Ed and Al take a step back.

"Winry, who's at the door?" Pinako asks. Winry steps out of the doorway for Pinako to see. She takes a puff of her pipe before saying, "Ah, Edward. You look more like your father every time I see you."

"Wha? I don't look a _thing_ like him!" Ed says in surprise.

"Hmm... Looks like you need new automail," Pinako notices.

"Heh, heh... You can't call me a pipsqueak anymore, huh?"

"Don't get cocky - you're still short," the woman says as she turns around to reenter the house.

"Hmph. Look who's talking," Ed mumbles.

Winry gestures for the brothers to come inside.

---

Ed makes a fist with his new automail hand. "Perfect as always..." he says, partly to himself, and partly to Al, who is standing beside him.

"I see you're feeling better, already," Winry comments with a smile as she enters the room.

"Yeah. By the way... What happened to that synthetic skin I had?" Ed asks her.

Winry carefully sets a glass of milk on the coffee table as she says, "Why would you want to cover up such fine workmanship?" She asks. "Besides, I doubt it would still fit around your arm and leg. I added a couple inches to both of them."

Ed widens his eyes as he notices the three-quarters full glass. "Milk! Can I have a glass, Winry?!" Ed begs.

"Uh... I guess so..." Winry replies, blinking a few times. A few seconds later, she pours Ed a glass from a large pitcher. Ed grabs the glass and runs into the kitchen with it, while Winry stares after him in confusion.

"Don't worry, Winry. - Ed's still Ed," Al reassures her. After a second he adds, "It's just that, we learned about a dessert called ice-cream while living on the other side of the gate. He's probably going to try making some." (2)

Winry sticks her head in the kitchen to see what Ed's doing. She watches as Ed dumps the milk into a bowl and adds a lot of sugar, followed by some vanilla extract. "What is it? A type of cake?" she asks Al in a whisper.

"You'll see," Al says, knowing she'll love it.

Ed claps and touches the bowl. Winry gasps at the blue glow. A second later, Ed walks out of the kitchen with the dessert.

"Wow... It looks like a cloud..." Winry comments in awe.

"Wanna taste it?" Ed asks, holding out a spoon. Winry swipes the spoon, eager to try a new dish, and scoops out a heaping spoonful. A second after she puts the spoon in her mouth, her eyes widen in horror.

"It's _freezing_!" she yells in shock.

Ed laughs good naturedly and Al says, "That's why it's called _ice_-cream, Winry."

"It's good, though..." Winry says as she tries for another spoonful. "How did you make it so cold?"

"It's simple alchemy. Slow moving molecules are cooler than faster moving molecules, so when I reconstructed the matter in the bowl, I just slowed down its movement. But, it's been so long since I've done much alchemy, I was a little surprised it worked." (3)

"You mean, you haven't used alchemy at all?"

"Alchemy doesn't work in the world on the other side of the gate. At least, it didn't until just recently..." Ed explains.

"So you were in a whole other _world_?" Winry asks them while trying to sneak another bite of Ed's ice-cream.

"Oh, I forgot I didn't tell you last time I was here..." Ed says. "The other side of the gate is like a parallel universe to this one. Only, the people there have turned to a science different from alchemy."

"You mentioned Hughes earlier... Does that mean he's on the other side of the gate, too?" Winry asks Ed.

Ed shakes his head. "No. He looks like Hughes and has the same name, but he's not the same person. Al and I had doubles, too."

"Do _I_ have a double? I'll bet she isn't as good a mechanic as I am," Winry says boastfully.

"Uh... Actually, we haven't met your double..." Al tells her.

"Oh..." Winry says. "So, now that you're back here, are you going to stay?"

"Of course we are!" Al tells her.

"Well... I guess..." Ed says.

"And just _where_ are you going to be living?" Pinako asks them as she enters the room. "You're not planning on freeloading off of me, are you?"

"Uh... I guess we could build a house nearby..." Ed tells her.

The rest of the day goes by somewhat uneventful, mainly with Winry asking the two brothers questions like "Al, when did you cut your hair?!" and "So your dad ended up on the other side, too?", as well as saying things like "Al, you got your memory back!? That's so wonderful!"

---

_A drop of blood falls onto a mound of dust, with disastrous results. Glass breaks, papers fly about the room. Ed feels his leg being taken away from him and screams for his brother as the molecules in Al's body separate._

_'If it didn't work then, it wouldn't work now. What did I give in exchange for returning to this world?'_

_Ed wakes to see a large chunk of decaying flesh on his left arm. He widens his eyes as he stares at what__'_s left of his rotting body.

Ed's eyes snap open and he rushes to a sitting position in the bed as he takes a few deep breaths. He glances at his left arm, but doesn't see anything out of the ordinary in the dim moonlight. He looks toward the other bed in the room, where his brother is sleeping. Relieved that he didn't wake Al with his nightmare, Ed lays back down, but doesn't shut his eyes. '_If my old man was right about the energy used in alchemic reactions coming from people on the other side of the gate... Where did we get the energy for the transmutations we did while on that side?'_ (4)

---

A week later, Ed talks to Winry as he sets his load of two-by-fours down.

"Hey, Winry, have I ever told you about the picture box they're developing on the other side of the gate?" Ed asks. Winry shakes her head. "Well, it's called 'television'. Al and I heard about it while we were running across Europe trying to find Huskisson and his uranium bomb. It's basically a box that picks up signals from the air and shows pictures and projects sounds. It's still in its planning stage, but it's showing some promise, in my opinion." (5)

"A box that shows pictures?" Winry asks and blinks. "I thought you said they didn't have alchemy on the other side of the gate! Ed you've been lying to me!" she exclaims.

Ed smiles. "No, Winry... Alchemy isn't involved. It's like... the radio, only you can see things, as well as hear them." Ed explains. He turns to the pile of lumber, pours some nails on top of it, claps, and touches the ground. The boards line up to form a wall.

"Ed... Tell me something..."

"Hm?" Ed asks, turning toward Winry.

"Which world would you rather be in?" Ed stares at her, not understanding. "Ed, I mean it! You're always telling stories about the other side!"

"Heh... Alfons Heiderich seemed to feel the same way," Ed recalls. He sighs. "The other Ed died because of me, and then I killed Al, too... Winry, if I could go back in time and stop myself from ever going to that other world, I would. Just me _being_ there has caused that world to become off balanced."

"Ed, one person can't change the world. Only you and Al being there couldn't be enough to offset the events of that universe. Trust me..." Winry says, putting a hand on Ed's shoulder.

"I guess you're right... It can be a good thing to only be a small part of the world sometimes, right?" Ed asks. He then frowns at himself, realizing that he just called himself small. (6)

Winry and Ed notice Al running toward them, waving. "Hey, guess who's on the way here!" Al calls to them. A second later, they notice Mustang coming over a hill.

"Mustang?" Ed says to himself, wondering what he's doing here.

"Hey, Ed, I have an proposition for you," Mustang calls as he nears.

"Yeah, what is it, Colonel?" Ed asks warily.

"Actually, Ed, he's not a Colonel anymore," Al tells his brother.

"Hmm?" Ed asks.

"I was promoted to Lieutenant General after Bradley's assassination." (7)

"How did you find out we were back, Mustang?" Ed demands. "And why are you here?"

"Just a hunch," Mustang says with a shrug. "I've come to ask you to rejoin the military," Mustang tells Ed.

"In that case, I guess you've come all this way for nothing. You should know I won't rejoin, now that I have no reason to, Mustang." The only reason he joined the first time was to find the philosopher's stone so he could get Al back in his body. Last he checked, the mission was accomplished.

"Oh? I thought you enjoyed helping people. And, now that King Bradley's out of the picture, the military is being ran much more respectably. - There's no more Lab Five's, Ed."

"You know better than that, Mustang. There'll _always_ be corrupt people in the military, looking for power and not caring how they get it."

"I guess you're right," Mustang relents. "I just wonder who I can find to help me get rid of those power-hungry scoundrels..." he says as he puts a hand up to his chin to think.

"Well, good luck with that," Ed says with a wave as he turns to walk away.

"Ed!" Winry yells at him.

"What?" Ed whines, turning his head toward her.

"I think you should rejoin," she says determinedly.

"But Winry, these are the guys who-!" Ed begins to exclaim, but stops.

"Killed my mom and dad. I know, but why let their deaths be in vain?" she asks, a hint of sadness entering her voice.

"Huh?"

--End Chapter--

(1) I'm referring to the pair she gave him in the movie. As far as I know, he never paid her. Of course, she didn't really care if he did or not - she was just glad he was alive. She's just kidding here...

(2) When I looked up ice-cream on Wikipedia, it said that it's been around for a very long time. But... I don't think I've ever seen any in the anime (even during Ed's and Elicia's birthday parties). It should have been much more common on their side of the gate, since it would be so easy to freeze it with alchemy. I'd think Ed would like it, so I put it in the story. Here's something amazing... When seeing some of the first episodes while putting them on DVD, I realize that Al said that their mom's stew tasted like milk. Way later in the series, you find out that Ed doesn't like milk, and Ed goes on about how great that stew was and how it has milk, but it actually tastes good.

(3) You'd think alchemy could slow down molecule movement, and I actually have proof of it. In one of the early episodes, before Ed becomes a State Alchemist, he freezes over a river to save a girl.

(4) First part of the dream is from episode 3, where Ed and Al try to bring their mom back to life. Second part is partly due to Ed's subconscious thinking about Pinako's comment about Ed resembling his father, and partly due to wondering what he had to give up.

(5) I looked up the invention of the television, since I thought it would be interesting to have it in a story based on a show on TV. It looks to have been made somewhere between the late 1920s and 1930s. I think 1927 is a bit early for it, but I'm sure it must have been talked about a little, right? They have radios on this side of the gate (like the one Al fixed in the first episode), so they might come up with TV's at about the same time, too, but if so, Winry may not have heard about it, being in the country.

(6) I meant that to be ironic. I'm trying to say that WWII is still going to happen - even though Ed was there, he wasn't able to change future events. So, what Ed takes comfort in is actually a bad thing.

(7) They call him a General at the end of the series and in the movie. It could be short for Brigadier, Major, or Lieutenant General, as well as a full General (got the ranks from Wikipedia), but I haven't heard anything that says which he is. Also, Ed calls him General in the movie, too, but Ed couldn't have known he was, since Ed wasn't around after that fight... Could be proof that he's still a Brigadier General from Bradley's promotion near the end of the series, but I don't remember anyone telling Ed about that promotion, either. 

---

Hmm... I put in a lot of those footnotes, huh? Should I keep doing that or stop? Any opinion?

I've tried drawing a scene from the next chapter, by the way, but I couldn't get everything to look right. I think Ed's upper body turned out somewhat okay, though, so I put the sketch I did up on DeviantArt. Check my profile for a link to it, and feel free to tell me what you think, and if you think I should color it.


	4. Reasons to be a State Alchemist

**'Kay, first off, I changed Mustang's rank. I also reworded a sentence: "my fight with Bradley" to "Bradley's assassination". There's also a slight rewording of the last two lines, but I repeated them here, anyhow. That's all you need to know.**

**Chapter Four: Reasons to be a State Alchemist**

"But Winry, these are the guys who-!" Ed begins to exclaim, but stops.

"Killed my mom and dad. I know, but why let their deaths be in vain?" she asks, a hint of sadness entering her voice.

"Huh?"

"The General explained how Bradley had arranged the war in Ishbal - the one that caused my parents to lose their lives. All Mr. Mustang did was follow orders, right? So it really wasn't his fault. Bradley was also responsible for several other major conflicts during the past two decades or so... Ed, if you rejoin the army, you can stop people like Bradley before other innocent people die without cause."

Ed looks at his friend's pleading blue eyes. He sighs and runs a hand through his bangs. "Well, when you put it that way..."

"You wouldn't be happy living here the rest of your life, anyhow. You've never liked staying in one place for very long," Winry tells him.

"Are you sure you wouldn't mind...? We just got back," Ed says.

"I know," Winry says and turns her attention to her feet. "But, I can handle it. Granny and I have always been patient and waited for the two of you, every time." Winry says.

Ed's silent for a second, trying to figure this out. "Winry, I know you don't really want me to do this. So why are you trying to persuade me to become a State Alchemist again, when I already made up my mind to stay here in Resembool? - Look, we're even building a house," Ed says, gesturing toward the two-walled structure that looks as though it's about to fall over.

"I told you. So you can stop people like Bradley before-"

"Other innocent people die without cause. - I heard it, but I don't believe it. What else is there, that you're not telling me?"

Winry hesitates for a moment. "Ed... Ever since you and Al came back, all you talk about is your past adventures. Granny and I love having you home again, but we know how bored you are, having to live in the country like this. We're just holding you back from what you really want. You would rather be out there saving the world. So please... Go with the Lieutenant General."

Ed realizes that she's right. He _has_ felt somewhat bored recently - is he actually ready for retirement? Even in Munich, he did his part stopping crooks. With Bradley gone, would he really mind being a part of the military? "Okay. I'll rejoin, but I promise that we'll visit often."

Winry smiles slightly, showing an odd mixture of relief and despair.

_'Is that all, or is there something you're still not telling me, Winry?'_ Ed wonders, staring into her eyes as though they would tell him the answer. Winry averts her gaze, making Ed even more curious.

Mustang interrupts Ed's thoughts by saying, "Edward, there's one more thing. - You have to take the State Alchemy Exam over again, since the official records say you've resigned from the military six years ago."

Ed frowns at this, but doesn't object.

"And what about you, Alphonse?" Mustang asks. "You could pass the physical, now."

"Nah, I think I'll stay out of it this time around, too. I kind'a liked being the sidekick. Besides, if we both become State Alchemists, we might end up with different assignments."

"Your choice," Mustang tells him with a shrug. He then realizes something. "You liked being the sidekick? - Does that mean you have your memory back?"

Al nods. "About four years ago."

"It was when you followed Edward back, wasn't it?" Winry asks.

"Yeah. I think it had something to do with the gate... But I'm not really sure, though. It might have happened before we went through the gate," Al says and scratches the side of his head. "Maybe it was when I jumped in that armor, or-"

Winry gives him a smile. "That's okay, Al."

"...Winry, I've been wondering, when did Mustang tell you about King Bradley arranging the war on Ishbal?" Ed asks her.

"Well, after the two of you went to the other side, the General and I met and settled our differences," Winry says. She turns her head toward Mustang. "Why don't you tell him?" (1)

"I was at Hughes' grave when she overheard me."

_Mustang stared at Hughes' gravestone as he said, "Falman told me you called the night of your murder, asking for me. No doubt, you were probably trying to give me information that could give me a boost to the top." Mustang smiled for a second at the man's dedication to him, but the smile quickly faded. "Another person dying at my hands... I thought I could change the military if I could become Führer, but it has only killed my best friend._

_"Hughes, I demoted myself to Corporal because I kept seeing everyone I've killed, and I've wondered if I should resign altogether. But when Ed reappeared that day, I wasn't so sure I was doing the right thing. Those people I see every night while I'm laying in bed - if I give up, would their deaths be meaningless? I'm here to ask your advice..." Mustang stood there for a few seconds before realizing that someone had been watching him. He turned to see Winry standing behind him, holding a bouquet._

_"I-I'm sorry. I was visiting Gracia and Elicia, and thought I would stop by here before heading home... I should have left when I noticed you were here."_

_"It's alright," Mustang said and looked away from her._

_"I heard what you said... About the people you've killed."_

_Mustang's eyes flew to Winry's, wondering what she was going to say._

_"I want my parents' deaths to have a purpose - as well as Mr. Hughes'," she told him. He nodded._

"After that, we went to a café for some coffee and he told me about the night my parents died. He went on to tell me about the things he's discovered about Bradley," Winry says.

Checking his watch, Mustang thinks, _'It's that late already?'_

"Are you supposed to be at HQ right now, General?" Ed asks.

Mustang frowns as he puts his pocket watch away. "I have paperwork due tomorrow. I guess I should get back to Central."

"Well... The next train leaves in five minutes," Al tells him. Mustang runs off to catch the train.

"Hey, Al, did you bring anymore wood?" Ed asks, looking around.

"Yeah, right here," Al tells him, pointing at the pile on the ground. Ed transmutes it into another wall. "What are you doing?" Al asks his brother.

"What does it look like? I'm finishing the house so I have somewhere to study. I'm a bit rusty and I don't want to embarrass myself by failing the written exam. How do you think it'd look for me to fail, after passing it when I was just a kid?!" Ed asks. Al and Winry laugh.

---

"Ed...?" Ed looks up from his book. During the past several months, he had gathered up every alchemy book he could find. He couldn't use the _State-Alchemists-Only _Library, now could he? (2)

"Yeah, Winry?" he asks.

"I brought you something to eat," she tells him.

"Thanks," he replies with a slight smile as she sets the basket down on the table next to him. Ed doesn't touch the food, though. "Here, I'll write you an IOU. I'll pay you for everything once I get my job back," he says, tearing a piece of paper out of a notebook and scribbling something down on it.

"Ed, that's not necessary. We're friends," Winry says as Ed hands her the note.

"You heard Pinako - she doesn't want a couple of freeloaders living down the road."

Winry smiles and rolls her eyes as she takes the piece of paper. "Wait - Ed, the date's wrong," she says, a little concerned.

"Oh, I lose track of time while studying. What day of the month is it, now?" Ed asks, taking the piece of paper back.

"No... _That_ was right," she tells him. Ed looks at her in confusion. "The _year_ is wrong."

"Huh?"

"It's 1922, Ed," she says with a frown, pointing at the '27' he has written on the paper.

Ed laughs in relief. "Oh, I forgot that our dating system is different from the other side of the gate. See, their dating system is based on the birth of Christ, so they're a few years ahead of us." (3)

"Birth of Christ...?"

"It's about a religion that-"

"That Rose told me about..." Winry finishes.

"What?" Ed asks, confused.

"After you left, she mentioned it to me. She said that a woman told her about an old religion that was in some ways similar to the one in Liore. She found a book called the "Bible" while she was in that underground city and she's been reading it for the past few years."

Ed puts a hand to his head in frustration. "Is she _trying_ to find another Cornello?"

"Ed... I don't think she'll fall into the same trap twice..."

"You better be right. - For her sake."

---

The days pass rather quickly for Ed, and the Exam comes sooner than he realizes. He passes the written test, which no one is surprised about; and the interview goes well, with Ed telling that he wants to join the military to help people. He does have to come up with a explanation for resigning from the military for six years, though, and he tells them that he realizes that he missed being in the military. He isn't really lying - he is kind'a looking forward to being 'the hero of the people' again. His reputation probably influences the judges somewhat, Ed realizes. Earlier, Mustang had conformed to Ed that he was freed of all charges Bradley had against him, after everyone found out about the things Bradley had done while he was Führer.

Ed now looks around the place reserved for the practical skills test. It's about the same as last time, with mountains of ice in one corner, mountains of rock in another, a river meandering through the middle, and trees scattered about. _'Where's everyone else? Last time, there were several others taking the test... And, there were so many taking the written test this time - they couldn't have all failed the first two parts of the exam, could they?'_ he wonders.

"So the rumors are true. The Fullmetal Alchemist _is_ taking the State Alchemy Exam again."

Ed turns to see a blond boy about his own age, only a few inches taller and with shorter hair. "Russell?" he asks.

"I'll bet you're wondering why we're the only two here today," Russell says. Ed nods. "No one else thought they had a chance against the Fullmetal Alchemist. They figured they'd drop out of the running right now and try again next year."

Ed smirks at his friend. "Then why are _you_ still here?"

"What? You think a half-pint like yourself is _better_ than me or something?" Russell asks. He becomes serious. "This test isn't about who can win. - It's about who deserves to be a State Alchemist. More than one person can pass, although usually only one does. It all depends on a person's skills or research findings..."

"It sounds as though you know a lot about the exam," Ed observes.

Russell nods. "I'm not sure if the rules will change this time because of us being the only ones here, but people usually have the option of either showing research results or giving a demonstration. You're probably going for the demonstration, but I decided to bring some research results to show. - To tell you the truth, Fletcher is the better alchemist of the two of us, but I didn't want him joining the military. I've been looking forward to the day I finally pass this test. After you left, I couldn't impersonate you anymore," Russell smirks a little as he says that. "I worked hard to prepare for this. After today, I'll be able to get enough money for my brother and me to live on, as well as enough money and funding for our research. Not to mention being able to use the library's first branch and gaining access to several stores that only cater to State Alchemists."

"Good luck," Ed tells him.

"Same to you."

"Where's the other participants?!" someone behind the two boys asks, sounding irritated. They turn to see that it is a man in a blue uniform. Ed doesn't recognize him to be someone he knows. Three other judges are standing beside him, one holding his hands up in the air to say he doesn't know, and another one shaking his head.

"Uh... I think we're it," Ed tells him, a hint of an apology in his voice.

"Oh... Well, in that case, we might as well make this more interesting."

--End Chapter--

(1) The movie came with some bonus stuff, and it was mentioned that there was originally more to the movie, but it was too long. One of the things they cut out was Winry meeting Mustang at Hughes' grave, saying that they decided they could do without it because she would probably never see Mustang again, anyway. So... I added in this part, based on that. It takes place after the movie, though. Sometime within those four years that have passed. Oh, by the way, if Falman isn't who answered the phone that night, I'd like to know. I think it was... And I don't remember anyone ever telling Mustang.

(2) "The State Alchemy Exam" episode 6 (my DVDs come in quite handy ): Mustang tells 11-year-old Ed that you have to find your own training, but suggests Tucker. So, Ed doesn't necessarily have to find someone to study under. (also the same episode where Tucker says that only one or two people are chosen a year, which I looked up for later - which I actually used later in this chapter... Thought I wouldn't get to that for another chapter or two.)

(3) Check out the episodes near the end of the show. When I tried looking up something about Ed's age online, before watching all of the series, I saw something confusing about two different dates. It's explained in the series, though (and mentioned in the movie). See, a little after that part where Ed dyes his hair green, he goes to Dante's house (after she's not there anymore) and his teacher explains to him about the year. (Can you believe I did that section of the story mainly so I can point out that the date is different? I doubt that many people realized it, and I really wanted to let everyone know)

---

I noticed a page of text about Tucker in episode 6 and decided to try pausing the picture to read it. After the first three lines or so, it started talking about Britain being the centre of the scientific revolution or something. (what was that about?! It was kind'a implied that the page was about that first talking chimera he made...)

By the way, thanks to Fornwalt for helping me with the chapter. (I still think it sounds a little off, but I'm tired of rewriting it...)


	5. Reinstatement

**Chapter Five: Reinstatement**

"You brought research findings, eh?" the man asks Russell, who nods in reply. "Is it possible for you to do a live demonstration, as well? - I will assure you, it won't affect your judging at all. It would just be to spice up this part of the exam."

"Okay. If you say so, Sir."

"Good... Now, unless anyone has an objection, I would like to see how you two do in a mock battle." Two of the other judges make surprised faces.

"Sir, this is very unorthodox," an older judge tells the man.

"Well, General Grumman, this is a very unusual Practical Skills test to begin with," he replies to the man with a slight smirk.

"Mock battle...?" Russell wonders aloud.

"It's a way for alchemists to show their combat skills. I once did one for my yearly assessment," Ed tells him. "But... Does that guy really have the authority to just change the test like that?" (1)

Russell widens his eyes in surprise. "Ed, you must be kidding! That's the Führer!"

Ed glances toward the man again with mild interest. "I was _wondering_ who took Bradley's place..."

"You two may use any of these raw materials in your battle," the man says. The three lower ranked judges begin to back away, nervous about getting caught in any crossfire. "Begin!"

"I'll have to warn you - I won't go easy on you," Ed says. Just as the words are out of his mouth, he finds that he can't move his arms and looks down to see vines wrapped around his wrists. He turns his head toward Russell in surprise. His opponent is standing beside a tree, his hand on a transmutation circle.

"I won't go easy on _you_, either."

Ed smirks.

Russell then sends a third vine rushing toward Ed. The ex-alchemist kicks both of his legs into the air, causing him to land on his back. He watches as the vine goes over his head, and then makes a u-turn back toward him. Ed yanks on the two vines that are still confining his wrists. After hearing a stressed sound from them, he yanks harder and they snap. He quickly stands and runs from the third, pursuing, plant.

Ed glances behind him after weaving through a few evergreen trees. The vine slices clean through the last tree Ed had ran around. _'I can't believe it! It's following my every movement!'_ he thinks. Ed notices the stream up ahead. He claps as he makes a dive for it. After Ed disappears into the water, the vine turns to pursue him. Just before the green tendril reaches the water, a hand surrounded by water shoots up and grabs it. Water flows up Ed's arm and onto the struggling vine. The vine begins to crystallize as the water freezes. Soon, the vine and the tree connected to it are being covered in three-inch thick ice.

Russell moves his hand away from the array just as the ice reaches it, and he backs up several feet. The tree explodes, causing twinkling ice crystals to rain down. Noticing Ed back on shore, Russell rushes toward another tree, chalk in hand. Halfway there, he notices steel bars shooting up from the ground in front of him. He turns to see that they're coming up in all directions, but he's able to jump over them before they can form the intended cage. "You seem rusty, Ed," Russell calls with a smirk.

"Oh, really?" Ed asks while running. He claps his hands. "This any better?" He touches the dirt under his feet and a large clay cannon rises from the ground, with Ed on top of it.

Russell stares at the structure for a second before coming to his senses and transmuting a large wooden fence from the trees around him.

"This one is quite resourceful, isn't he?" the Führer comments, nodding toward Ed as he watches the battle. "I've only seen a handful of alchemists who know the chemical makeup of so many different substances," he says, noticing how Ed had transmuted the ground under his feet, the water from the stream, and the metals under the ground to form the bars of his unfinished cage.

"I agree," Grumman tells the man. "He was always considered a very accomplished alchemist."

"Here it comes," Ed warns as he pulls the cord, causing a metal cannon ball to crash into Russell's wall. A green glow can be seen a second before the collision.

Ed widens his eyes as he notices vines lashing out from the dust cloud still present from his attack. Thousands of vines encircle his large dirt cannon, and tighten their grip around it until it begins to crumple underneath Ed. Ed claps as he falls, but vines grab hold of his wrists so he can't use alchemy. He ends up buried in a shoulder-high pile of dirt, struggling to get free. The vines surrounding him and the dirt pile don't help, either. Russell walks over to Ed, who still can't seem to free himself.

"Guess this means I win," Russell comments. Ed still struggles, and after a second, blue light can be seen coming from inside the dirt pile.

"Don't underestimate me, Tringum," Ed says with a smirk. The vines around Ed snap as he moves. As he emerges from the dirt, Russell realizes that Ed was able to transmute his automail arm into a blade and cut through the vines. Russell drops his chalk as Ed transmutes Russell's own vines and pins him to a tree with them.

"Can't escape without this, can you?" Ed asks, picking up the chalk. Russell moves around, trying to free himself, but gives up after a second or two.

---

Ed pulls his ponytail out of the way and adjusts the navy blue collar before buttoning up the front of the uniform. _'It's only fair that I wear the uniform. Last time, I didn't because it's a symbol of the military, and I didn't want to have any more ties with them than I had to. But this time... I didn't join just to get access to the first branch, or so I could follow leads on the philosopher's stone. This time, I accepted being a part of the military when I agreed to join it.'_

"I'm surprised it fits," someone says. Ed turns to see Mustang standing behind him. "I told the Führer we needed size extra, extra, extra, extra small, but he said the smallest uniform they had was size extra, extra small."

Ed tilts his head to one side, a confused expression on his face.

After a few seconds of silence, Mustang looks away and says, "forget it."

Ed widens his eyes slightly in realization. "Oh, sorry, General," he says with a slight smile. "It's hard to get upset, after wishing I was shorter for the past three years or so." It's Mustang's turn to look confused. Ed goes on to explain, "Automail didn't match up," and demonstrates by holding his arms in front of his body, parallel to each other.

"You have your first assignment. The paperwork is in my office," Mustang tells Ed, who nods and follows the man into the hallway.

As Ed enters the room and sits in a chair opposite Mustang's desk, he asks, "So, what's the details for this assignment of yours?"

"Before I get to that... Here," he says, tossing him a pocket watch. "You're now officially reinstated."

Ed widens his eyes in surprise as he notices a few dents on the face. "Is this..."

"It's yours, Fullmetal."

"How did you find it? I thought I lost it in Liore," Ed says. (2)

"That's not important. What _is_, is the report you're going to write, pertaining to the restoration progress being made here in Central."

"Restoration?..."

"Don't tell me you forgot about the army that followed you through the gate that last time you were here."

"That wasn't my fault," Ed exclaims defensively. When the surprise wears off, he slumps some in the seat and looks away as he says, "...So they're not done rebuilding yet?"

"Most of the city was completely restored years ago, but some of the slums could be another story. That's what you're going to find out."

Ed sighs, wondering why he ever agreed to become a military dog once again. He then hears a door open.

"New recruit, General?"

Mustang smirks as he says, "I guess you could say that, Lieutenant."

Hawkeye widens her eyes as the ponytailed man turns his head toward her. "Ed," she says in surprise.

"Good to see you again, Second Lieutenant," Ed says with a smile.

"The assembly are expecting that report by next week, Fullmetal. You better get on it," Mustang tells Ed.

"Assembly...?"

Mustang sighs. "Didn't you learn anything during the months before the State Alchemy Exam?" he asks, sounding frustrated. "In the new government that was set up, the Führer has control over the military, and the assembly is the legislative body in control of the country. However, even though the military and the country are now separate, the two are still linked together. Your report falls under the category of the assembly, but we're still in charge of gathering information for them. So," Mustang doesn't continue because Ed starts to stand up.

"Thanks for motivating me to leave sooner," Ed mumbles as he turns to leave the room. Mustang smirks.

"Al's in the lounge," Mustang mentions as Ed goes through the door.

--End Chapter--

(1) I admit it, I stole it from episode 13, "Fullmetal vs. Flame". I figured that, if alchemists could do it for the yearly assessments, they could probably do it for the practical skills test. This is a fanfic, anyway! Why _can't_ I steal from the anime?! That's practically the definition of 'fanfiction'! Anyhow... I'm not sure how I thought of using that, but it really helps, because I couldn't figure out what Ed could do for the demonstration. That, and it'd be kind'a weird having Ed be the only one doing a demo (since I changed Russell to wanting to do the research thing after finding that in the anime, too). Only problem is that, Ed was upset with Mustang in that episode and that's why he fought so rough, but he wouldn't be upset with Russell. By the way, I added Grumman as a fourth judge for the test. On Wikipedia, it says he may have became the Führer, but I decided to have him as a General, instead. Oh, and a friend of mine helped me with the battle a little. (he suggested jetpacks and flamethrowers, but I think what I have is good enough...)

(2) I don't know what happened to the watch. If anyone knows, I'd like to say more about it. I tried looking it up on my DVDs, but I don't know where to look. See, I first look in the episode where Mustang finds Ed and Al while they were on their way back to Risembool. Al apologies to Ed about it and says that there was Archer and Scar and the red stones... That didn't really say whether or not it stayed back there in the sand or not. I then go back to the episode where the battle actually takes place. Now... Mainly, if there is any other mention of it in future episodes, I wouldn't know where to look.

---

Not many footnotes this time, huh? Guess I didn't have that many comments on the choices I made in the chapter. Hope the battle was okay. I added more detail stuff after a friend of mine mentioned it. I doubt that the things about the government are correct. On Wikipedia, it looks as though Grumman may be the head of something, but it's hard for me to believe that he's the Führer, because he's not even a full General in the series, and there's bound to be Generals somewhere who would be first in line for the position. Unless it's like a free vote thing... Then, there's the assembly vs. the country thing that was mentioned at the end of the show, and I'm not sure how they'd work together or what things would fall under which category. Also... I said that Al's in the lounge, when I was actually wanting him to be in a room that Hawkeye calls the office in episode 13... Since everyone hangs out there, it's hard to picture it being a specific person's office, and if it is, I wouldn't know who's... Besides, that's in Eastern Headquarters, when this is in Central. I'm just going to say there's a lounge, 'kay?

Hmm... Hope this gets more reviews than the chapter I posted for my other FMA fanfic today... I'm beginning to get depressed.


	6. Rebuilding

**Chapter Six: Rebuilding**

"Yo, Alphonse. We have our first assignment," Ed says as he enters the room.

"Hey, you're wearing the uniform," Breda points out, somewhat surprised.

"First time it fits, huh, kid?" Havoc asks around his cigarette.

"_No_," Ed says with a frown and narrowed eyes.

"I thought you would have gotten over that height issue by now," Havoc says.

"I did," Ed states, still frowning.

Al blinks, confused. "Uh... Brother, so, what's the assignment?"

"A report on the restoration project in Central. Mustang was pretty vague about it, though. Guess we'll just look around the city and see what we can find."

---

Back in his office, Mustang stares at the ceiling of the room. The white plaster begins to resemble snow.

_'Another blizzard...' Mustang drearily thought as he looked out the window. Something made a ringing sound and he shifted his focus to the outside phone, staring at the snow-covered machine disdainfully._

_"Corporal Roy Mustang," he said as he picked up the receiver._

_"Sir, I thought I should inform you that I found something you may be interested in when I begun the restoration process here in Liore."_

_"And what's that, Armstrong?" Mustang asked unenthusiastically. It had been close to two years since the incident in Liore. That Ishbalan serial killer, known only as Scar, had completely leveled the town in minutes. Nothing was left, except for the evacuated residents. ...Of course, Scar was only a pawn in Bradley's game. Apparently, Major Armstrong and his family had recently volunteered to help the people rebuild the town. Being posted up north, Mustang didn't stay very up to date, so he could only assume._

_"A pocket watch, General - buried in one of the sand dunes," Armstrong answered._

_Mustang widened his eyes slightly. Of course, a watch didn't mean much. Hundreds of soldiers were killed. There was bound to be pocket watches strewn about the area._

_"The date of October 3rd, 1910 has been carved on the inside of the lid. The rest of the watch was found about a foot away. I can't say for certain, but I think it's his. I thought you would like to have it. ...It's pretty damaged, but with a little alchemy, it'll be good as new."_

_"No. Leave it as is, and give it to his brother. - He deserves it more than I do."_

_"Yes, General. I'll inform Alphonse Elric right away."_

_"And stop calling me 'General', Armstrong," Mustang added, but then realized that the other man had already hung up._

Mustang jumps as he hears the door slam shut.

"Lieutenant General Mustang!" Hawkeye shouts. "Stop daydreaming and take care of that pile of paperwork littering your desk!"

"C'mon, Lieutenant. I was getting around to it," Mustang tells her with a shrug.

Hawkeye sighs. "You're impossible," she tells him, but a slight smile tugs at her lips.

"You're just realizing that?" Mustang asks her, tilting his head and raising his right eyebrow.

---

Ed growls loudly before yelling "The nerve of that guy sending us on this assignment, when he knows we don't have a clue about the aftermath of Eckhart's attack!"

"Calm down, brother," Al suggests, noticing some stares from other people in the restaurant. "I'm sure we can figure out where most of the damage took place... We just need to remember what direction she went, and from there..."

"Hey, I couldn't help overhear... Are you two talking about that attack four and a half years ago?" a girl from the next table asks, leaning over the back of their booth. She has waist-length, sandy-colored hair, and bright blue-green eyes. Ed and Al nod in reply to her question. "Well... Most of the buildings were re-built, but I know _one _section of the city still in bad shape," she tells them.

"Where is it?" Al asks.

"It's in that direction," she says, pointing out the window. Ed and Al look in the direction indicated. "Mom and I go there once a week to help the people who have lost their houses. I'll take you there, if you want."

"Do you need to ask your parents, first?" Al asks.

She shakes her head. "At work right now."

"Well, is there someone else..." Ed begins.

"Hmph. I'm eleven years old, do I _look_ like I need someone's permission?" she asks. She then notices their doubtful faces. "Fine... You can ask my babysitter after she comes back from the bathroom, officer..." she tells Ed, noticing his uniform. She looks up to see a woman walking toward her. "There she is right now!" she exclaims, pointing.

The woman stops walking, wondering why her friend's child is pointing her out to an officer. "I just went to use the bathroom..." she says, pointing toward the restrooms. "I didn't leave her unintended for more than a couple minutes, tops," she tells Ed defensively.

"That's fine," Ed replies with a smile, waving a gloved hand to signal no one's in trouble. "She was just saying that the two of you could show us a part of town still in need of repair after what happened several years ago."

"Oh... I think I know the place you mean. I could show you sometime, if you want."

"Is right now okay?" Al asks.

"I... I'm babysitting right now..." she says worriedly. After noticing Ed and Al looking disappointed, she says, "Well... I guess I could bring her with me, but I'll have to ask her mother, first."

---

"Are you sure it's okay with you?" The babysitter says into the payphone. "I'm not sure when we'll be back..." She nods, forgetting the person on the other end can't see her. "Okay. Well, goodbye," she finishes, then hangs up.

"Looks like we're showing you that side of town today," the babysitter calls to the others.

Al smiles, then bows politely to the woman. "Thank you for taking the time to show us!"

She smiles back before saying, "You're welcome."

As the brothers begin to follow the girl and her babysitter down the road, Al wonders if he's seen the girl somewhere before or not. Her waist-length hair is slightly wavy and is worn down, but she has a few red clips in the front to hold her hair back. A couple strains of loose hair aren't long enough to stay in the clips and hang down to her eyes.

"So, you're a State Alchemist, right?" she asks Ed. She slows her pace for a minute so she can walk next to him.

"Yeah," Ed says.

"I thought so. You have a watch chain," she says, pointing toward his chain. "I want to be a State Alchemist, too, someday. ...Ya know... There was one boy who passed the State Alchemy Exam at age twelve. - That means I only have one more year to go."

"You have to know a lot of alchemy to pass the exam," Al points out to her.

"_I_ can do it," she says proudly.

"What are you going to do when you become a State Alchemist?" Ed asks.

"Hey, look! We're here!" she says. Up ahead are several buildings with boarded up windows, collapsed roofs, and chunks of wall missing.

"Hasn't any alchemists came to help rebuild?" Al asks, amazed at all the destruction.

"Not really," the babysitter replies. "No one considers this side of town worth rebuilding. It's on the fringes of the city and most people don't even realize that it's here. See, even before the attack, this was a very poor section of Central. All the help is going to the richer areas of this city, or to Liore for the second time, or for the finishing touches of New Ishbal."

"So these people didn't have enough money to rebuild on their own, and the government won't even help?" Ed demands.

"Well... Yeah," the woman answers.

"No one's actually _living_ here anymore, are they?" Al asks.

"They have to," the babysitter says with a sad shrug. "They don't have enough money to move away."

"Well, this is _definitely_ going in my report," Ed says. He then walks up to one of the buildings and raps on the door. "Hello, anyone in there?" he calls. A thin man comes into view. He widens his eyes at Ed's uniform.

"T-The military," he utters in surprise. "You're not going to arrest me for staying here, are you?"

"Don't you realize this place isn't safe to live in?!" Ed asks incredulously.

"Just hurry and get it over with. At least I'll have a roof over my head in a jail cell," the man says, lowering his head and holding his arms out, ready for handcuffs. To his surprise, Ed walks away from him. He looks up to see Ed clap and touch the ground. A second later, the bricks that had fallen off the side of his house over the past several years rise into the air and go back into place, followed by his roof rebuilding itself. "My house..." the man says in awe. "So you're a State Alchemist?" Ed nods in reply.

Al goes to the next house down, following his brother's lead.

---

"Nonsense!" a man says. "You're our guests! After all that you two alchemists have done today, the least I can do is give you and your friends a free meal!"

"Uh... Okay, if you insist," Ed says and rubs the back of his head. "So, what do you serve here?" he asks eagerly.

"We have a large menu!" he says while handing everyone at the table menus. As Ed glances at the menu, the man says, "We have mashed potatoes, french-fries, tater tots, potato pancakes, curly fries, fried potatoes, hash browns, potato wedges, five flavors of potato chips, potato soup, baked potatoes, boiled potatoes-"

"Uh... Do you serve anything _besides_ potatoes...?" Al asks.

"...Did I mention we have scalloped potatoes?"

--End Chapter--

Nope. No footnotes this time. I didn't really think of anything to mention... I'm wanting to have a little more about Mustang's daydream, though. Any questions are welcome... I was trying to arouse some curiosity at times in this chapter and I wanna know if it worked.

Well... Looks like my house burned down a few hours after I posted the last chapter. (I was at my mom's, and Sunday morning, December 9th, 2007, my dad woke me up to tell me. Someone had called before I woke up to say it was on fire.) I already ordered another FMA movie from Amazon. I would have liked to have had the movie, since I came up with a few things to look up... For one, I wanted to know a little more about Mustang's cabin... Mainly, where his phone would have been. First, I had it inside, then I rethought it and put it outside... And secondly, I'd been wondering if we know who was killed in the movie by a building collapsing or something - the kid Al was trying to use alchemy on and Ed stopped him? I thought it was a random person, but my brother thought Al knew the kid. I didn't have a chance to look it up before my house burned.

I still have my laptop, and the three FMA DVDs I'd made, so yay. (I may also get to buy some nice stuff, since we need replacements of everything. - That means, maybe a nice flat screen HDTV, and a nice, new Click-Clack sofa.)

I think I started this chapter before the house burnt down, and I had written down the ideas for the potato guy, and something involving the girl quite a while ago. How the girl is introduced is pretty different, though. I at first considered Ed going to the girl's house and her answering the door, then calling, "Mom, there's a strange man at the door," but I guess she wanted to come into the story this way, instead. (Why he'd go to her house may be revealed later, but maybe not...) Anyhow, the view of the roofless, windowless houses was partly inspired by my house, and I had just noticed that I mention the Ishbalan's rebuilding, Liore rebuilding (twice), and now Ed's rebuilding part of Central. So, the title is for that, and also a tad bit about me.


	7. The Little Alchemist

**Chapter Seven: The Little Alchemist**

Ed lies awake in the darkness, wondering about the law of equivalent exchange. Could it be possible that there _is_ no price to be paid for traveling between worlds? Four and a half years ago, when he came back to this world for that short period of time, nothing seemed to have been taken away. Of course, Eckhart's attacking the world could have been some form of payment for his brief visit... (1)

"Hey, are you still awake?"

"So far," Ed tells the nuisance in the bunk above his. Her mother had said she was allowed to spend the night here and the girl had _insisted_ on rooming with him. Maybe his own thoughts were keeping Ed awake, but _her_ questions weren't helping, either. And besides that, she wouldn't let him have the top bunk! - She said he was too heavy and would break it! (2)

"I want to know more about State Alchemists. That pocket watch increases your power, right?" she asks.

"Yeah, I guess so," Ed replies apathetically. "Why are you so interested in becoming a State Alchemist, anyhow?"

"Um... It's getting late. We can talk in the morning."

"Wha...?" Ed says and blinks. "Hey!" he exclaims as he rushes to a sitting position. His head hits the bottom of her bunk and he rubs his sore forehead as he yells, "You're the one who wanted to talk in the first place!"

The girl yawns and pulls her covers closer to her body before mumbling, "I'm too sleepy, now..."

Ed lets out a soft gasp as he realizes something. "You don't want to tell me. That's why you change the subject every time I bring it up..." he says softly. "You're reason... It's something illegal, isn't it?" He waits for an answer, but none comes. "You can tell me. I'll keep it a secret."

"Are you sure...?" she asks meekly.

"Yeah. I won't tell a soul - you have my word."

"Well... Okay, then... I want to become a State Alchemist for my Dad."

"So he's a State Alchemist?" Ed asks her.

"No... He was in the military, though..."

"_Was_?" Ed asks, picking up on the past tense.

"Uh..."

Ed widens his eyes. "You can't be planning to-" Ed begins to shout, when something with a fading yellow glow stuffs itself in his mouth.

"The others are going to hear you! You promised you wouldn't let anyone know!" the girl says in a distressed whisper.

Ed pulls the object out of his mouth, which turns out to be a piece of fabric transmuted from the girl's blanket. "Okay," Ed says, now talking much quieter. "But, you need to realize that human transmutation is illegal for a reason. Ever hear of Equivalent Exchange? - The governing law of Alchemy? There's nothing you can give in exchange for your father's soul."

The girl's eyes widen and her breath catches in her throat. Could this man be right? "H-How could you know?"

"Because I..." Ed forgets what he was going to say. "Because I just do!" he says. He rolls onto his side and pulls the covers to his neck.

---

"I hope those beds were suitable."

"Yep. Brother and I fixed them up good as new with alchemy," Al tells the man, who nods his thanks.

"Well, anyhow, you all are just in time for breakfast! What would you like? Hash browns, potato pancakes? Maybe-"

"Uh... I don't think anyone's hungry just yet," the girl's babysitter interrupts. _'Maybe staying the night at the restaurant owner's house wasn't a good idea...'_ she thinks.

"And I need to get back to HQ and turn in my report, so..." Ed says.

"We really can't stay for breakfast," Al tells the man.

---

"So, where's your house?" Al asks the girl as they walk down the road.

"It's just down the street here," she answers.

Al glances at the buildings around him, when he sees one startlingly familiar. _'That _can't_ be hers...'_ Al thinks.

"Elicia," a woman calls as she walks out of the house.

Ed's mouth hangs open.

"Mom!" Elicia says with a smile and runs to the woman. "You won't believe all that these two have done for those people!"

_'That's Elicia?! ...Wow. She's really grown since she was four,'_ Al thinks. _'I should have visited her with Winry after I finished my training with Izumi... But, now that I think of it, I didn't remember who she was at the time.'_

"Hm?" Gracia looks up to see the two brothers. "Edward. Alphonse. It's been awhile... Would you like to come inside?"

Once in the house, Elicia explains to her mother, "It was like that time I fixed your flowerpot, only, with an entire _house_!"

"Ah," Gracia replies with a nod.

"I never knew alchemists could do something so grand!" Elicia says.

"It wasn't _that_ big a deal..." Ed replies with a slight blush.

"Yeah, we just did what we could," Al says, also blushing.

"I'm sure it was every bit as grand as Elicia says. I wouldn't expect anything less from the Fullmetal Alchemist and his brother," Gracia tells the young men with a smile.

Elicia's eyes slowly widen. "The Fullmetal Alchemist...? _You're_ the Fullmetal Alchemist?!" Elicia asks Ed.

"Uh... Well, yeah..."

"You're the one that was there when I was born? And the one with the same birthday as me? And the one Winry always talks about? And the one who became a State Alchemist at age 12? And the one-" Elicia pauses for a second, examining Ed. She tilts her head to one side. "I thought you were shorter." Ed slaps his forehead. "Why didn't you tell me you were the Fullmetal Alchemist!"

"What? You didn't tell me who _you_ were, either," Ed counters.

"But _I'm_ not the famous one!"

"Elicia, please..." Gracia says, "they're our guests..."

Elicia bows her head. "I'm sorry, Mom."

"Would you two like to stay for lunch?" Gracia asks.

"Sure!" Ed says.

"We would be honored, Mrs. Hughes," Al tells her.

---

"So, what made you think of learning alchemy, anyhow? Like you said last night, your father wasn't an alchemist," Ed says as he picks up a worn, white teddy bear. Elicia had asked him to come to her room a few minutes ago.

"Dad's friend is," Elicia says from her seat on the bed. "He's the one who showed me some arrays when I was little, and he brings me alchemy books sometimes when he visits." (3)

Ed notices the shelf nailed to the wall, filled with books on alchemy. "Oh? And does he know what you're trying to do with alchemy?" Ed asks, turning to face the girl.

Elicia shakes her head. "You're the first person I've ever told. If he knew I was planning to do human transmutation, I know he wouldn't buy me any more books," she says while looking downward.

"And for a good reason!" Ed exclaims. He sighs. "There's one thing I don't understand. Why now? Your father has been gone for seven years, since this winter. You haven't been planning to bring him back this whole time, have you?"

"No... I just thought of it in the past year. It's because... I've realized I can't remember his voice anymore," she says, beginning to tear up. Ed lowers his head. "I-I just want to hear him say my name again."

Ed still has his head lowered. "He died just a couple days after your fourth birthday, didn't he... I can understand how you feel. He was the first friend I had made within the military. When I found out he was gone... I wanted to kill whoever did it to him. - But now I know, that's not how the world works. Nothing we do will bring him back."

"Ed, Elicia - time to eat," Gracia calls. The two of them heard, but neither one makes any indication of it.

---

"Here's your report, General," Ed says as he drops the manuscript on the desk.

"That was quick..." Mustang notes, glancing up at Ed, who remains standing in front of his desk.

"There wasn't much to report. Most of the city has been completely restored, like you said."

"I hope you mentioned that section of the city you paid a visit to yesterday. I was _meaning_ to get the Führer to do something about that..."

"Yes. It's all there, and now you won't have to go through the legal process."

_'No complaining that I know too much? That I used him in order to rebuild that part of the city?'_ Mustang wonders. "Well, what do you plan on doing now, Fullmetal?"

"Visiting the people I'm close to."

--End Chapter--

(1) I have several dates in this chapter... Hope it's not too confusing. I'm going to say it's around April at present. The movie, which is when Eckhart attacked Central, took place between the end of October and beginning of November (which is before Ed's birthday). So, it's been four and a half years. I believe I was saying it was four years ago, but that was at the beginning of the fanfic, and it's been awhile, since Ed was studying for the exam for several months. And Ed's birthday was during one of those months he had been studying, so he's now 23.

(2) I wondered about giving Ed the top bunk, but then, I wasn't sure if he liked the top bunk or not... So I gave him the bottom. But then... after writing most of the chapter, I was scanning a few episodes, and heard Ed, Al, and Winry talking about old times (at the end of "Bonding Memories", episode 24), and they mentioned how Ed and Al used to fight for the top bunk. So, I added in a little about it.

(3) Okay, two things here. first, I believe I remember seeing a three- or four-year-old Elicia drawing transmutation circles on the sidewalk. That kind'a implies that she may become an alchemist, right? And, someone was bound to have showed her some of those circles, so that's who that friend of dad's is. Secondly, Ed doesn't recognize that teddy bear. I don't think he's seen it before, since he wasn't at that birthday party, but if he has seen it, I doubt he'd remember it, now, anyhow.

---

Hmm... That last paragraph was supposed to sound serious. I didn't put in much description, because I thought it'd sound more serious without it. It's mainly because it's right after that talk about Hughes, and Ed's last line is inspired by it, too. (I was planning on having him visit them pretty soon, anyhow, but now that Ed and Elicia wanted to talk about her father, it fits in even better.)

Look in my profile for my picture of Ed vs. Russell. I have it on deviantart now. (it took so very long... and I also cropped it a lot... And, it's just Ed smirking, but I'd love some comments on it.)

Again, I'd love to hear any questions... If you think you know something, I'd like to know... But, I will say that the babysitter and the restaurant owner aren't anyone from the show. I could have made the babysitter Lieutenant Ross, I guess, but then Ed would have recognized her. Anyone figure out that the girl was Elicia before I told? My brother did when I made him read the last chapter, but he said he wasn't sure, because he didn't think she'd be 11, yet. She is, though, since she was born on Ed's 12th birthday, and Ed's 23 now. She was four when Ed first left, and it's been close to seven years, now. (I had been saying it was six years ago, but the months are a little confusing. Might as well be vague about timing, since the show was, right?)

So... I might as well ask. Anyone curious about how Mustang ended up with Ed's watch? (points at the last chapter). Maybe you have a theory on the Equivalent Exchange stuff Ed keeps worrying about (and, I finally got a idea for what could have happened to Ed, right after finishing the chapter before this one, but I may change my mind if I get a better idea. Still pretty much in the dark for Al's exchange, though - unless...).

I just got the movie in the mail, by the way. I finally was able to look up some stuff - I didn't see a phone at Mustang's post up north, but it might as well be outside in the cold... I know he must have one, though. He called Winry in the movie, and if he was already in Central at that time because of the earthquakes, then he would still have had a phone, since the word must have gotten to him somehow. As for Elicia, my brother thought it was her teddy bear Al saw, and that's who he was trying to bring back to life in the movie. But, the teddy bear she was given for her fourth birthday was white, while that one was brown. If it was her, they would have used that white one. (I was thinking about having Al think it was her, and that would have been why he took so long to recognize her, when in fact, it was just another kid with a teddy bear - but, again, I don't think Al would think it was her unless the teddy bear was white. So, I just added those thoughts about how he hadn't seen her since she was four. Kind'a makes sense. Winry probably told him about her, but he would probably feel awkward talking to people he doesn't remember, so he probably wouldn't have seen her because of that and because of all the time he'd spent with Izumi.)


	8. Thoughts and Flashbacks

**Chapter Eight: Thoughts and Flashbacks**

"You broke your arm already?!" Winry exclaims. "You rejoined the military less than a month ago!" She grabs Ed's arm, then mumbles, "Stupid Ed. Guess I have to figure out what needs fixed," as she thrashes it about to see what needs repairing.

"Wha- No! It's fine! In fact, it's better than fine!" Ed's quick to say.

After a second, she abruptly lets go of the limb. "...You're right. It should be working great... But then, why else would you come?..."

Ed blushes slightly. "I told you we would visit often..."

_'I know he said that, but I thought 'often' meant once every year or two, tops...' _Winry thinks.

After Ed and Al come inside, Winry mentions, "Mrs. Hughes called yesterday and told me you two came to visit."

Al nods and says, "It was nice to see her and Elicia again. It's been so long."

"The two of you actually helped deliver Elicia, didn't you?" Winry asks.

"Not really... Brother and I just ran around like scared chickens," Al says and laughs. (1)

"We were young, then," Ed says. "We were more help last year, on the other side of the gate..."

"Huh?" Winry asks.

_"You always make the best cakes," Ed said as he took a bite. Al nodded in agreement._

_"That's what Mäes always says," Gracia replied with a laugh._

_"Only because it's true," Officer Hughes pointed out as he entered the room. She laughed again, then turned to look at the two brothers. "Every year, you and Al insist you're too old for birthday parties, and yet, every year you end up having a good time."_

_The brothers smiled embarrassedly, but the smiles faded as Gracia reached for her stomach._

_'What's the probability that...' Ed wondered to himself. He glanced out the window to see snow falling - a blizzard._

_"Gracia, what's wrong?!" Hughes asked worriedly as he rushed to her side._

_"I think it's time," she said as she held her stomach._

_"You don't mean...?"_

_"I'll heat some water," Ed announced as he stood and rushed to the kitchen._

_"Officer Hughes, you better see if you can get a doctor," Al said._

_"Uh... Right," the man said and went to get his coat._

_---_

_"Brace yourself, your about due for another contraction," Ed told Gracia. Al entered the room with some towels._

_"You boys act as though you've done this before," she commented._

_"Heh... Only once," Ed replied with a grin as he scratched the back of his head. Gracia started yelling as the pain returned._

_"Al... Hughes is supposed to be back by now," Ed whispered with a hand cupped around his mouth._

_"Yeah... In _our_ world, he got back with the doctor just in time," Al thought out loud. "...But, brother, what if it's different this time?"_

_"It's coming!" Gracia shrieked. Al positioned himself at the foot of the couch._

_Ed's eyes widened as the baby's head came into view, then the room began to spin, and everything turned black._

"Al! I didn't _faint_!" Ed protests.

"Like the time you didn't faint at that crime scene when you were twelve?" Al asks with a smirk. (2)

"I didn't!" Ed insists.

The brothers stop arguing when they hear someone giggling. They turn around in time to see Winry fall out of her chair in a fit of laughter.

"The mighty Fullmetal Alchemist fainting at the sight of a baby?" Winry says between laughs.

"I didn't faint!" Ed yells again.

Al begins to snicker, as well, and Ed sighs.

---

_'Maybe I shouldn't have told Mustang about Ed and Al coming back...'_ Winry thinks as she works on an automail arm. The brothers had gone to the house they had built, so she decided to try getting something done. _'Ed seemed to suspect something when I talked him into becoming a State Alchemist again...'_ She recalls Ed staring at her and how she needed to turn away._ 'But he wouldn't understand. It was that day Mustang called to tell me that Al went with Ed to the other side of the gate...' _(3)

_"Oh... I see..." Winry grimly said into the phone. She had the feeling that Ed had left, but now Al, too?_

_"If they ever come back, I'll let you know."_

_"Well, thanks, I guess..." Winry said. She still didn't trust him, but she thought she should at least act courteous._

_"But in return, if _you_ see them first, you have to contact me," Mustang told her, the smirk evident._

_She hesitated. 'It's not like they'll actually come back, right? But even if they do, he can't throw me in jail for not telling him...' she thought. "Yeah... sure."_

Winry takes a break from her work and stretches her arms. "Then, there was that time, after meeting him at the cemetery..." she says to herself.

_The man sitting in front of her sounded like a different person. Mustang seemed broken after he lost his eye - or, dare she think it? After Ed disappeared that first time. The day Ed was back, when Mustang called, the General sounded like the man she remembered and admired in some strange way, but ever sense then... he was close to being the same broken person Ed had first left behind._ (4)

_"You may not know this, but Fullmetal was the best thing to happen to the military. If he was around at the time of the Ishbal rebellion, I know hundreds of lives could have been saved..." Mustang said as he stared into the deep black liquid in his mug._

_"I know. Ed and Al always do the right thing, no matter who they have to go against. That's why Granny and I had let them go off for years at a time," Winry told him, a slight smile coming to her lips at the memories. Mustang seemed to flinch slightly. She was quick to realize what she said wrong. "Oh! I didn't mean-"_

_"Don't apologize. - You're right. If I didn't follow orders - if I just did what I knew was right - there wouldn't have been as many casualties in that war." He didn't name two of the innocents he was thinking of._

_"The future is still ahead of you..." Winry began hesitantly. "You can't change the past, but you can learn from what happened and keep a massacre like that from happening again... You already helped stop one war before it got out of hand."_ (5)

_"Ed and his brother were the real heroes. - They always were. The rest of us just wish we could be more like them. The military needs those boys..."_

Winry starts working on the automail limb again as she thinks, _'I didn't actually promise him that I'd get Ed to rejoin if he came back...'_ She turns the screwdriver slower than usual, distracted by her own thoughts._ 'I wasn't even going to tell him that Ed was here. But then, all Ed talked about was the world beyond the gate. I wasn't lying when I told Ed I wanted him to rejoin because I knew he was bored and wanted more adventure. I just... left out the part where I told Mr. Mustang that he was back.'_ Then, with the screwdriver still in her hand, Winry folds her arms across her chest._ 'Well, there's no reason to feel guilty. - If Ed really doesn't want to be in the military, he could always quit,'_ she decides with a nod.

Winry then notices Pinako walking past her, counting a large wad of bills that she's holding.

"Granny, where did all of that come from?" Winry asks curiously.

"Those two boys finally paid off their IOUs," she says with a smile. "Here's payment for the building supplies, the five months worth of groceries, and also those two sets of automail limbs." (6)

"But I thought we weren't going to charge them for any of that!" Winry says incredulously.

"Oh. I guess I forgot," the gray-haired woman replies and begins to stroke her chin.

Winry narrows her eyes as she mumbles, "Yeah, right. You've been planning this from the start." After a second she calls after Pinako, asking, "Did you pick up Al's medicine?"

---

Ed lies on his back, stretched out on his bed, as he looks at his pocket watch. He recalls how he had carved the date inside. He runs a finger over the lettering, tracing out every scratch he had made. It would have looked neater, and been quicker, if he had used alchemy, but he had decided to use a pocketknife, instead.

The fire that took place on that date looks so vivid in his mind, still. But, something bothers him about the flashback. He frowns and puts his watch back in his pocket, then gets up to ask his brother about it.

--End Chapter--

(1) I looked up the episode where I remembered them mentioning to Izumi about delivering Elicia, and Winry was sitting right beside them, and it was Al that said they helped deliver a baby, and Ed who said they just ran around screaming. But, I decided not to change what I'd said. Besides, I don't think they mentioned who's baby, and even if Ed had written a letter to Winry right after it happened, I don't think she'd remember it very well by now.

(2) Remember that episode while Ed was staying at Tucker's and Barry the Chopper had cut up a woman, and it reminded Ed of what he saw when he tried transmuting his mother? That's what I was trying to say, but I still think the wording seems off... Anyhow, incase you need your memory jogged anymore, Ed fainted and Tucker heard him calling out something like "Mom, I'm sorry" in his sleep.

(3) That's what was going on in chapter four, when Ed thought _'Is that all, or is there something you're still not telling me, Winry?'_ and Winry averted her gaze. (Sorry, I'm not much for writing romance, if that's what you thought it was - could have been part of it, though. But, since it's said in the anime that Ed and Al used to fight over who will marry her, I'll probably hint at Ed and her, or Al and her in some chapters.)

(4) Three things to mention here. First... Ack! Mustang sounds like Pegasus! (from Yu-Gi-Oh!) "_Mustang seemed broken after he lost his eye_" I never even considered them having anything alike before... But, although Pegasus talked about breaking people's spirits, and he was kind'a broken after his wife died, when he lost his eye, his hope was kind'a renewed. Unlike Mustang. (I just thought of another similarity... He saw his dead wife for just a little while, right after losing his eye, and that was what renewed his hope and spirit - like Ed's brief visit and Mustang. Not to mention the "that's what this eye sees" quote Mustang said in the movie being a little similar to Pegasus's visions... Okay, so he can read minds with the fake eye, close enough to seeing dead people - and he did see his wife.) Maybe I should have had Mustang go mad like Pegasus did, instead of having him go back to being gloomy (although not as gloomy as he was at first).

Anyhow! (Eh, heh... Got kind'a carried away) Winry saying that she somehow admired Mustang (as he used to be) came from something she said in either the anime or movie. I can't remember which at the moment, I think it's near the end of the anime. She says something about it being strange, but she actually admires the guy who killed her parents. Mustang's hard not to admire, though. I mean, he has a pretty unique personality in the Fullmetal Alchemist anime. He's kind'a like a grown-up version of Ed, perhaps...

Thirdly, Mustang actually called her twice. If you notice in the movie, Mustang called her, apparently wanting to talk to Al, and it had something to do with the earthquakes in Liore and Central. It was before Ed came back, and I'm guessing it was at least a day before, and maybe several days, knowing how they love to skip days and not tell... When trying to figure it out, I realized that it seemed to be daytime on Al's side and night on Ed's. Also, I found out Mustang does have a phone up north. I saw a wall of the building in the background. It looks more like it's on the inside, but it's not clear... I guess I'll leave the phone outside in the fanfic unless I find out for sure.

(5) I mean the war Eckhart tried to start. I thought about trying to clarify that more, but Winry and Mustang kind'a know exactly what each other are thinking, so I can't picture them explaining everything to each other, because they know the other knows what they're thinking.

(6) The IOUs are mentioned in chapters three and four. (this part used to be pretty close to the top of the chapter, and this was footnote number one - but then I added in a lot of things, and kept changing the footnote number until it was the last one. So many things I wanted to say in this chapter, and they won't get mentioned until later...)

---

I'm not sure how long 'til the next chapter. I've seemed to have so much homework ever since this semester started... I did start on a picture of Ed waking up in the dark from a nightmare, from around chapter three or so, but that'd probably take a pretty long time to finish.

I had a FMA dream recently. I'm gonna tell you about it because it's awesome. Seriously, though, I wish I had written it down right after I had it. Had it Sunday, January 13, 2008. So, let's see, it mainly had to do with Ed and Al, and, a long time ago, they had a sister. She looked kind'a like Winry, but she wasn't. There was some type of accident, and the brother's considered her dead (and, hey, I think it was after their attempt at Mom, so they knew not to try bringing her back from the dead). But, now, Ed hears her call for help. It's like ESP or something. Al thinks he's crazy, though. (I don't know if Ed ever figured it out, or at least not this early in the dream, but he was able to attach her soul, like Al, without really thinking because of the knowledge crammed into his head at the moment, and her soul ended up in him. And, also, she never said anything before, but she did now because her body is in danger) So, Ed kind'a talks Al into helping him break into this building's basement and looking for her body. I remember Ed looking in a large freezer, like you see on TV, and it's full of ice - enough to hide a body and keep it fresh - but he finds nothing out of the ordinary, not blood or anything - making Al even more sure that Ed's going to get them in trouble over nothing. But then, Ed sees this big cylinder-shaped thing. It might have been a hot water heater, but I'm not sure. He has a feeling about it, and wants Al to open it up for him, like he's afraid to. Al relents to him and makes a big cut in the metal. I think a bunch of beans, like pork and beans, comes out of it (and I think they're pretty warm, too, so maybe it was a heater). But, in the back, it's her. So then... Can't remember how it got to here, but I think Ed's on a hillside, trying to reattach her soul and body. Maybe it was the location the accident happened at (not sure what the accident was, exactly. It was similar to when Ed and Al tried to bring their mother back, but I'm not sure what it was.) Ed does some alchemy, and a man that recently died at the spot is walking around. Apparently Ed got something wrong and it brought back the wrong person, so he ignores them, too set on bringing his sister back. The man seems disappointed that Ed isn't paying attention to him, and I think he says something. Ed looks into his golden eyes. (Now, this man, I'm pretty sure he's a soldier, and he has short black hair and gold eyes. After waking up and thinking about the dream, I wondered if it was Fuery, but this man is older than Fuery. Then I wondered if it could be Hughes, but it didn't seem like him, although it does sound a lot like him. I don't think he had glasses, but I don't know if that means much.) So, I think the guy says something like "Ed, don't you remember me?" or "know me?" or something like that. And after looking into the man's eyes for a few seconds, Ed says something like "Of course I remember you," or "Of course I know you" or something, then hugs the man. It's then that I realize what happened. See, Ed's sister's body wasn't suitable for the transmutation because of how long it had been abandoned. So, this man, who just died recently, was much better material for the transmutation, so it kind'a just happened. And, I guess Ed's sister had pretty gold eyes. That's what gave it away to Ed. So, after that, as kind'a an epilogue, the man (who's, like, twice as tall as Ed - kind'a funny) is walking along with Ed (and maybe Al, too), looking happy, and his hair looks more girlish now, done in a little different style, and he's apparently developed some hips from a girl's soul inhabiting his body.

So... Think I should make a short fanfic about the dream, or did it sound too weird? It made so much sense and seemed like something that would have happened in the anime, while I was dreaming it. (it seemed to have a wonderfully dark mood to it... Especially when faint thoughts of Ed's sister were going through someone's mind) I get the feeling that it'd still make sense, if I could remember everything correctly. Except that my dream seemed to think of alchemy as unpredictable, like lightning, versus the FMA world's science. Although, when you play with human transmutation, it can get pretty unpredictable, right? And, in the anime, Ed didn't know how he did some things at first, so he really could have merged a soul within his body and not realize it, like how he probably didn't think much about Al's soul and the suit of armor.


	9. Equivalency

**Chapter Nine: Equivalency**

Ed rounds the corner, and comes to Al's bedroom door. When they were younger, the brothers always slept in the same room - perhaps because each other was all they had in this world - but in recent years, they've both felt a need for a little more privacy. (1) Ed notices that Al's door is opened just a crack. He's just about to call his name and barge in, since he's still bad about the privacy thing, when Al begins coughing. Normally, he would assume it's nothing, maybe a cold at most, but the image of Alfons and his similar cough won't leave him alone. A creaking floorboard close by brings him out of his thoughts.

"I first noticed it about three weeks after you two came back from the other side of the gate," Winry gravely says as she stares at the floor. When he turns around, Ed notices the small white sack in her hands, which she grips tighter all of a sudden. "He was always careful not to let you see him coughing."

Ed's too stunned to come up with something to say.

Al must have heard Winry's voice, because he opens the door, asking, "Winry?" He sees her almost immediately. A smile comes to his face at the sight of her paper bag. "You brought me more medicine. I was going to pick some up, but I forgot..."

"Um... Al..." Winry begins. She glances toward Ed as she tries to think of the words.

Al turns to see what she had glanced at. "Brother!" he gasps in horror. "Uh... I have a cold, see? And I... uh..." He realizes that Ed isn't buying it. He sighs in defeat. "I started having the symptoms the day after Mustang came. At first I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to worry while you were studying for the State Alchemy Exam. But after that, I thought it was best you didn't know..." Ed's hair covers his face as he listens to Al. "Since _you _didn't have any side effects from going through the gate, I figured you wouldn't think I would, either, as long as I didn't tell you."

Al and Winry nervously await Ed's reaction. "I assume you've seen a doctor while I was studying for the exam?"

Al nods. "...They said my body's making up for the missing organs relatively well. They don't think it will shorten my life by much."

To Al and Winry's surprise, they begin to notice a wide smile, barely recognizable because of the bangs covering Ed's face, but definitely there. He places a hand on Al's shoulder. "I'm glad that's all." Winry blinks, wondering why Ed didn't go ballistic on them for keeping it a secret for so long. Al wonders the same thing. "Hey, I think I'll take a shower," Ed tells the two of them, his bangs now away from his face and everything about him cheerful. "Pinako got my hair kind'a dirty when she flipped me onto my back an hour ago."

"Granny did what?" Winry asked.

"We were outside when she showed up. She wouldn't stop until we gave her all the money we owed her," Al explained.

---

Ed took the rubber band out of his hair and turned the outside faucet on. He could have put a shower indoors, but there's just something about having one outside that he likes. (2)

_'I'm truly glad I've figured out what we had to pay in order to return to this world, but why did it have to happen to Al? And did he actually pay my way, as well as his own, with those body parts?'_ Ed thinks, now not so sure. _'When we went to the world on the other side of the gate, we didn't have to give anything up, because the two of us going _was_ the exchange. The gate and beyond the gate seems to be the same thing, as far as equivalent exchange goes. If anything, something should have been given to this world in exchange for taking us. No wait, that's wrong.'_ Ed sighs, closing his eyes as he tries to concentrate on his thoughts. _'When an alchemist wants to bring something back that was taken from them by the gate in a previous transmutation, they must do two things: one, give something in exchange for the energy required to give back that thing, and two, return whatever they had received in exchange for giving up the thing in the first place._

_'Dante sending me and my old man to the other side of the gate should have gained her something in return._

_'But, I came back. So, Dante must have given back whatever she had received from sending me to the other side, satisfying condition number two. I had noticed that Wrath was missing my arm and leg, so that must have satisfied condition number one... the energy requirement._

_'Then, when Envy...'_ Ed pauses for a second, a vivid flashback appearing before his eyes of when his half-brother impaled him and took such joy in doing so. _'Al used the stone, sacrificing himself, to bring me back. He also used the stone to return my arm and leg to me. The stone was condition number one. What was given to us in exchange for my limbs and his body was returned to the gate at some point, fulfilling condition number two._

_'When I brought _him_ back, it was a little more complicated. A complex transmutation had to be done. I was able to return his _body_ because we had given back what was received in exchange for it in the past. For me to bring his _soul_ back, he had to give up what he received in exchange for his self-sacrifice. - Me. Those things were condition number two for both parts of the transmutation. Condition one, I'm still unsure of. My father once told me it had something to do with Al's and my hardships during those years. When I was fifteen, I remember a time when I ranted to a total stranger about how I kept giving, and not receiving anything in return. So, maybe my old man was right about that. Maybe all of those happy childhood years I gave up in order to fulfill our dreams were used for condition number one. _(3)

_'The first time I returned to this world with the help of that rocket, I must have bypassed equivalent exchange, by going too fast for the gate to react. When I returned to the other side, with Al, I was supposed to be there already so nothing happened, but something should have been given to this world in exchange for Al._

_'The two of us being back in our own world now, we both should have given something in exchange, satisfying the two conditions. Whatever was given to this world in exchange for Al, was probably returned. But, _my_ second condition would have _been_ Al. That didn't happen... If it had, he would have been back in that armor._

_'And, there's condition number one. It doesn't make sense that a few internal organs would be all we would have to give.'_ Ed finishes the shower and turns off the water. _'Wait... What about the other Ed, and Alfons? Was the other Ed part of my equivalent exchange to return to this world when Dante sent me to the other side of the gate? Then, perhaps for someone to come to this world from beyond the gate (versus just _inside_ the gate), a _third_ condition would have to be satisfied. Alfons would have been condition three for me to return the second time I was here. Or maybe Dad. Did one of them fulfill the condition for Eckhart to come here? ...I wonder who died this time, so Al and I could return to this side of the gate.' _(4)

As Ed re-enters his house, he notices that Winry's still there. He had thought she would want to go back to her work after delivering the medication to Al. Ed steps on another one of his creaky floorboards and makes a note to fix those boards later.

"Hey, Ed," Winry says. Ed walks over to see what she is doing and she says, "I noticed that you transmuted these pipes wrong, so I thought I'd fix them for you. You were _this_ close to having an awfully cold shower." she held up a hand, with a few centimeters gab between her index finger and thumb.

"Uh... Thanks," he replied with an awkward smile.

She stands up. "Hey, Ed, can I braid your hair? - For old time's sake?"

Ed grimaced, the pain from last time still prominent in his mind. "Actually, I haven't braided it for years."

"I promise I'll be more gentile this time..."

Ed sighs. "Fine..." He sits down on the nearby couch and Winry sits beside him. He turns his head away from her so it will be easier. To his surprise, Winry _is_ more gentle this time.

"Why _did_ you stop braiding it? I thought you always hated ponytails, since your father wore one."

"I donno. I guess I forgave the old man after meeting him on the other side of the gate. - I told you we had lived together for several months before I went to Transylvania to study rockets."

Winry remembered the story. After Ed found Al's double in that country, he came back and Hohenheim was gone. Ed wondered what happened to him, but didn't find out until two years later, just a few minutes before Al and Eckhart opened a portal between the worlds. Ed had watched his father die. (5)

Ed smiles. "Heh. I used to be so mad at him... Now I can't even remember why." There's a sudden yank on Ed's hair. "Ow! What?!"

"Ed! How can you forget that he left you guys and your mom shortly after Al was born!?"

"Yeah, _now_ I remember it! Just let go of my hair!" he yells as he struggles to free himself. Winry lets go. "I just didn't recall it for a second. I can't forget something like that so easily, you know." Winry reluctantly settles down after a few seconds, and resumes braiding Ed's hair. Ed says, "I guess I just lost sight of it after making up with him several years ago." A frown is on Ed's face.

---

The rest of the day goes by uneventfully. But, around 1 a.m., Ed wakes up from hearing a door slam. _His_ door slamming, he realizes as he sits up.

"Ed, Mrs. Hughes was just on the phone!" Winry yells at him in a panic-stricken voice. Ed doesn't understand, still half asleep. He notices several tools and pieces of metal in her arms. "She told me to bring automail parts and come right over! I think there was some type of accident!"

Something clicks in Ed's mind, and he throws his covers back and jumps out of the bed. He rushes to put on the first thing he finds, which just happens to be his military uniform.

"She didn't tell me what happened, but I thought I should tell you and Al," she says as Ed scrambles to put on some pants.

_'She _didn't_! She couldn't have!'_ Ed thinks.

--End Chapter--

(1) Ed and Al sleep together while staying at Winry's and they sleep together while staying at Tucker's. That could just be since they didn't have enough rooms to give them each their own, but I'm pretty sure they enjoyed having each other as company.

(2) Ed takes a shower at Winry's in ep.17, "House of the Waiting Family" (I believe). He's outside the house, showering in some shorts/boxers - I'm not truly sure what they are. So, either Winry has no indoor shower (whether because she's rural, or because they haven't been invented yet), or Ed just likes to be outside. Either way, what I said works. (by the way, I'm assuming that Ed's nightmares are more horrific than Al losing one or two body parts that he might not even need. That's why he was smiling)

(3) Ed and Hohenheim talk about Ed's exchange in the last episode of the series, close to the end of the episode. Episode 16, near the end, is the one where Ed mentions how he keeps giving and not receiving anything in return. I love the dialogue, but I decided not to have a flashback of it. This is what is said. Ed, with tears in his eyes, exclaims, "What have we ever gained for our loses? It's always been a one-way current, just a series of us giving to the void." The man he's talking to replies with, "A dream to get everything back the way it was." So, I guess, in my logic, Ed gave up his dream?

(4) Ed's not counting Eckhart's soldiers, I know. That's more for simplification than anything else. I'm going to say that those guys were dead each time they passed through. They were just zombies, right? So they didn't require someone on their side of the gate to die. They passed for themselves.

(5) I would think that Ed would be 18 at the end of the series, but it says "Munich, 1921" and the movie says "October, 1923", and Ed is 18 there. So, although some time must have passed since Ed came to the other side of the gate (and I might have been able to figure out exactly how much, if I listened to Skeska's narration again) it was less than a year, before Ed took off to Transylvania and when he was still 16.

---

Wow, I found out on Wikipedia that Eckhart's mother died when they were ten, and their father died when they were 27. I just thought it sounded a little like Ed, since _his_ mother died when he was around that age, too. I kind'a wish they brought that out in the movie when Eckhart said that Ed had nothing in common with her.

I took two or three days to do this chapter, when I should have done homework. (probably would have taken longer, but I did have notes of what I wanted to say - and was going to say them in the last chapter, but they got pushed back)

By the way, edPod has some nice stories. If you haven't already, check out "Hesitant Return" because it's great. It's like, this story, only more exciting and with a different plot. So... I guess it's totally different. Anyhow, Ed dyes his hair red. That's just cool.

Another note I thought I'd mention... This is one of the only times I've ever written the title before the chapter. Like I said, I knew what I wanted to say, so I did see that most of it dealt with equivalent exchange. I added that long monologue Ed has in the shower, though. In the past, I had thought about Al thinking about Sloth and how that episode with the stone worked out, but then, it seemed like I should have more in that shower scene, so I wrote about it, and some other things, there - and all that conditions stuff just kind'a came to me as I wrote it. The first version of that scene didn't mention about there being different parts of equivalent exchange and I was having trouble myself, trying to figure out why so much needed to be exchanged. So, I hope you guys understood it.

Hey... Is this story boring? It seems boring to me. It seems like I keep beating around the bush and I can't help it. Maybe I should just re-write the whole thing and say what Ed had to give in exchange at the beginning of the story instead of drag it out like this. Well, at least I finally have what Al gave up...


	10. The Price Paid

Thanks for the encouragement I got after posting last chapter. I think that's the main reason I got this one done so quickly.

I'm gonna reveal some stuff in this chapter. Could you let me know if you figured that was what happened, or if it totally took you off guard, or doesn't make any sense, or what? It'd really be helpful.

**Chapter Ten: The Price Paid**

"Elicia!" Ed yells as the front door slams onto the floor.

"Fullmetal?!"

Ed instantly recognizes that voice and begins to glance around the room as Winry, on the steps outside, rants something about destroying people's property.

"Ed?! What's going on?!" Skeska asks in a panic. Ed notices that Mustang and Skeska are sitting near a couch, along with Gracia. Ed blinks in confusion. Now, of course, it takes quite awhile to get to Central from Resembool, so it's bright daylight outside at this time, and Ed's a little too late to take part in the panic Gracia was experiencing on the phone several days ago. (1) As Al claps and transmutes the door back into place, Ed walks over to the couch. Just as he had thought, Elicia is lying there. Her head is bandaged and the red clips that used to be in her hair are missing, causing her sandy-colored hair to fall in her eyes. Most of her right leg is missing and bloody bandages cover the little stump that's left.

"What did you do?!" Ed demands of the girl, picking her up by her shirt collar. Tears form in her eyes and she looks away.

"Brother, what are you doing?!" Al asks in amazement. He gasps at the sight of Elicia's missing leg.

"I said, what did you do?!" Ed repeats. She still doesn't answer.

"Looks like she has something in common with _you_, Fullmetal." Ed starts at Mustang's words. "I guess I should have known..."

Ed lets go of Elicia's shirt and she sits on the end of the couch with her head turned away. "What are you saying?" Ed asks the Lieutenant General.

"You don't mean," Al asks, wide-eyed, "she tried to bring him back?"

Mustang nods. "If I knew she was planning to perform human transmutation, I never would have given her those alchemy books," he mutters. (2)

"Let her tell us what happened, herself!" Ed demands of his superior officer.

"...I'm afraid she can't," Gracia says quietly. "She doesn't understand what you want her to say. - She lost her hearing."

Ed widens his eyes. He gently brushes Elicia's bangs away from her face to see that the set of bandages around her head are over the place an ear should be. Ed's eyes begin to tear up.

"We found her in the cemetery around twelve thirty that night," Mustang informs the brothers. "Hughes' coffin was dug up, and there were dead animals covering it. Elicia was lying unconscious, a few feet away. Apparently, she thought the lives of those animals would have been enough in exchange..."

"Was there...?" Al begins to ask.

Mustang shakes his head. "I didn't actually open the coffin, but nothing made a sound. - It didn't work."

"Why did you have to do that?! I told you there was nothing you could give in exchange for your father's soul!" Ed yells at the girl as tears begin to run down his cheeks.

"S-s-sorry," she says in an awkward voice, guessing at Ed's words. Tears begin to leave her eyes, as well. No one says anything for a few seconds.

"I'm afraid I can't do anything about her ear, Mrs. Hughes," Winry says, her bangs covering her eyes, "Her leg, on the other hand, can be ready in two days. I'll give you a discounted price." (3)

Gracia nods in reply.

---

Al leads Ed into another room while Winry gets Elicia's measurements.

"Brother, did I hear you correctly?! Did you _know_ she was planning that and you didn't tell anyone?!"

"I didn't think she would actually _do_ it!" Ed says defensively. "I thought I had talked her out of it."

"How could you think that?! You know how _we_ were, when we had our minds set! Granny and Izumi _both_ lectured us, and we still went on to try it, anyhow!"

"Wait- what?" Ed asks, shocked. "You mean, _we_ tried something like that before?" Ed glances at his right arm and mumbles, "That would explain a lot..."

"...Brother?" Al asks.

"I guess it's only fair I tell you, Al..." Ed says with a sigh. "After I found out what you had lost, I began to realize that I couldn't recall some details about my past..." After a second, Ed adds, "Well, I noticed it before that, but I thought maybe I was just forgetful or something."

"Ed, what are you saying?" Al asks, worried and not understanding his brother's words.

"...I can't remember some events. It's just like I said..." A hollow smile comes to Ed's lips. "All this time, I thought the gate would take something tangible from me. But I should have known this could happen, since you lost _your_ memory when I brought your body back from the gate that time..."

"That can't be true!" Al exclaims with wide, desperate eyes. "I've heard you tell Winry about those years on the other side of the gate! We've talked about the time I was stuck in that armor! You-"

Ed's hair covers his face as he calmly interrupts with, "Al, when was the last time I talked about something that happened before we burned that building down?"

Al realizes that Ed means their house, and he opens his mouth to announce the answer, but no flashbacks come to mind.

"It's odd," Ed says in an eerily calm voice. "Every so often, I'll begin a sentence. Halfway through, my mind blanks on me."

Al stares at Ed. Tears threaten to fall from his eyes and his voice wavers as he says, "Brother, you once told me that memories fade over time. How do you _know_ it's not just normal forgetfulness?" (4)

"Did Winry tell you that I had mentioned to her about making up with our old man on the other side of the gate?" Ed asks. "I let it slip that I couldn't recall why I used to hate him. She made sure to fill me in. I knew I wouldn't have just forgotten something like that..."

Al doesn't say anything.

"The first time I couldn't finish a sentence was when Mustang had asked me to rejoin the military. I was saying something to Winry, but I lost my train of thought. It was a shock to hear her say her parents had died in a war, but I didn't think about it for very long... (5) Then, there was that night I talked to Elicia. She asked how I knew that nothing could be exchanged for a human being's soul. I was about to tell her how I knew, only to find out that I didn't. Maybe if I remembered whatever it was, and had told her, she wouldn't have tried it..."

"Brother, stop talking this way!" Al demands.

"Huh?" Ed looks up, startled. He notices his little brother's tears. "I'm sorry, Al," he says in a whisper.

---

While the Elric brothers are in another room, Mustang finds himself looking at an old photo of Hughes, smiling brightly and with a little, pigtailed Elicia on his knee.

_'It's a shame she didn't succeed,'_ he thinks. _'For all her trouble, for all she's lost, she has received nothing in return. What will happen to her, now? Will she end up in the military, trying to find the fabled Philosopher's Stone, like Edward and his brother? Like me?'_

"This is stupid," he mutters under his breath. "Why doesn't anyone ever work on creating a time machine instead of trying to bring back the dead or searching for a stupid stone that only causes more pain?"

"...How do you know _that_ wouldn't lead to more pain?"

Mustang turns his head to see Gracia looking at him. He didn't think he said that loud enough for anyone to hear. After a few seconds, he smirks. "You're probably right about that."

After a short pause, she says, "Roy, I think I can handle things, now. You should get back to headquarters and catch up on the paperwork I've made you miss."

Mustang frowns. "_Must_ you bring up paperwork?" He sighs. "You're probably right about that, too. But, if anything happens, call me."

She thanks him with a warm smile and a slight nod.

---

Winry tosses items out of her toolbox as she says, "I can't believe it! How could it not be here?!" Gracia had let Winry use the present room as an automail workshop, and the blonde had been hard at work yesterday and this morning.

"Um... Need any help?"

Winry looks up from the half-finished mechanical leg to notice Ed in the doorway. "I must have left my screwdriver at Resembool..." she says, mostly to herself. She recalls how she had been finishing up a job for another customer. She must have laid the tool on the table when she went to give Al his medicine and had forgotten all about it. "Ed, could you pick up another one for me?" she asks, trying to look cute.

"But what's wrong with that one?!" Ed asks, pointing toward the one on the table, beside some wrenches, bots, and other tools and parts.

"It's the wrong size!" she yells - as though he should know that.

Ed sighs and runs a hand through his bangs. "Why don't you start using all the same size screws?"

If Ed didn't know any better, he would think there's fire coming out of Winry's mouth as she says, "Ed, don't be stupid! The correct screw types must be used for first-rate machinery like this!"

"Okay, okay," Ed says, making a motion with his gloved hands to try getting her to calm down.

A few minutes later, the Major is walking down the street, staring at the note Winry had given him, telling the requested screwdriver size and shape. He has no idea what any of it means, but hopes the guy at the hardware shop will know.

Just as Ed spots a hardware store, he notices a blonde lady walking down the sidewalk who looks eerily familiar. "Huh...?" he says and blinks.

--End Chapter--

(1) I've been purposely vague about how long a trip it is from Resembool to Central. But now I've found a FMA forum on here titled "The Fullmetal Writer" and someone on there had found an episode where a distance is mentioned. It's in episode 15, "The Ishbal Massacre", a little less than two thirds of the way through the episode. Ed tells Marcoh that Resembool is only a three day ride from there (which appears to be Eastern, but I haven't really looked into it very much - if it's not Eastern, I'd like to know). So, Then I tried looking up things on Wikipedia, but I couldn't find anything, except that Eastern is close to Resembool and Liore. So, I'd say, from how Ed seems to think three days isn't long, and how Wikipedia implies that Central is farther away, that a trip between Central and Resembool could be about five days. Perhaps longer. And I'm just magically having it daytime wherever they get off the train, by the way. (and here I thought my eight day trip across America was long! It only takes three days to reach the west coast (I spent two days off-train, one for the Grand Canyon and one for Santa Barbara. It'd be stupid if I didn't get off anywhere, right?), and I only liked it so much because of how much I got to see! Ed's trip would be so routine, and I'm pretty sure his trip doesn't go through so many towns. Heh. Trains sure are faster nowadays... I feel so bad that all my notes about my trip have burned. I wrote down exactly where I took each picture, and now I have no idea what towns most of my pictures are from.)

(2) Remember the chapter that Elicia tells Ed about her dad's friend, who taught her alchemy and gave her books?

(3) When Ed needed to replace his automail that time in the series, they said it'd be done in three days. It sounded like that was very quick (they had improved since Ed was 12). But, since Winry went to study and get better at building automail after the series, I think she can do it in two days, now. I guess I should also mention that Ed had his leg modified (I don't think they had to start from scratch) as well as needing a new arm, but there were also two mechanics, instead of just Winry.

(4) Anyone else remember that time Al thought his memories were fake? He asks Winry who a girl is, and she says it's that girl they always used to play with as kids, but Al can't remember her.

(5) I had changed that part about Winry's parents a few times. I hope I didn't confuse anyone by referring to that here.

---

I was very much tempted to name this something like "What is Lost" but I didn't want to, since there's an episode titled "That Which is Lost". The title I did choose, just kind'a came to me all of a sudden, right before putting this story up. I wonder if that means I've heard it before... Also, I mentioned this at the top, but, could you tell me if you expected Ed's equivalent exchange, or expected what happened to Elicia and what she did, and perhaps give a guess at this woman I mention at the end here?

Al seems so emotional... I thought he would be like "Yay! That's wonderful - you always wanted to forget that stuff, anyhow." But, I guess Al saw it differently than I first thought he would... Maybe because he now has no one to share his memories with. I'll try to remember to talk more about his feelings next chapter. I'm also going to get to something I'd been thinking of for awhile. One of those "whatever happened to this?" things that the anime never told about. I'm still trying to work out the bugs, though.

Hey, anyone else notice how Sloth didn't seem to fit her name? Guess what, I looked up "Seven Deadly Sins" on Wikipedia, and it says that Sloth actually means sadness and discontent (and not being slow). Doesn't that fit her perfectly?! That's so cool!

Looking up "Alchemy" and "Ouroboros" on Wikipedia also tells a lot about things. The Ouroboros is an alchemic type of symbol that means "all is one", sound familiar? And, the Philosopher's Stone really was searched for - it was dark red, and amplified transmutations. And, wow, a guy named Flamel actually created the stone from some complex recipe (or at least claimed to). Hmm... I hope I'm not getting too caught up in this stuff. (Eh, heh. I can never believe how much these shows take from real life.) When I found out that there was a lot of true stuff in Sailor Moon, I started seeing cats that fit Luna and Artemis's description, and it didn't help that I was the same height as Lita, favorite color's green, and always liked lightning.


	11. A Familiar Glow

**Chapter Eleven: A Familiar Glow**

"Clara...?" Ed asks as the woman nears him. She looks almost the same as she did eight years ago, but her hair might be an inch or two longer. Ed wonders why she would be here in Central. She stops and glances at Ed, a puzzled look on her face. Ed asks, "It's you, isn't it?"

A light seems to come on inside her head. "You wouldn't happen to be that kid I had some fun with a few years back, now would you?" she purrs. Ed being taller than he was at age fifteen _did_ throw her off for a moment. He was only about an inch or two shorter than she was, now. And being clad in blue also made Ed look different. "Last time I saw you, I would of had to get on my knees to give you a kiss." (1)

Ed blushes as he exclaims, "What are you talking about?! We never kissed!"

She chuckles at his reaction. "Shall I make up for that, now?"

Ed widens his eyes and decides to change the subject with, "What brings you to Central? I mean, you were pretty popular over in..." Ed trails off and turns his gaze toward the ground. "Oh... I guess Aquroya was taken off the map a few years ago... Sorry about that..."

"Actually, a little over a year after your visit, some alchemist found a way to keep it afloat for a little while longer."

"Huh...?" Ed looks toward her in surprise. He smiles. "That's good to hear."

"And what about you? Did that stone of yours fulfill all your dreams, Edward?"

Ed looks away.

"That jewel didn't turn out to be all it was made out to be, huh..."

"Kind'a..." Ed mumbles. The truth was, if the Philosopher's Stone was never created, thousands of lives would have been saved. The stone didn't even have a thing to do with Al getting his body back. "Wait a minute..." Ed says to himself and turns his gaze toward Clara. "How did you know I found the stone?"

She seems taken off guard, but after a moment of thought, she says, "Ed, remember when I said I would help steal it for you?"

"...Yeah?" Ed says. His eyebrows furrow as he tries to figure out what she's getting at.

* * *

Al sighs. He stares at the white ceiling above him. Gracia had let the brothers sleep in the room last night, and when Ed left about an hour earlier, he woke Al without realizing it. The younger brother didn't feel like talking to anyone just yet, though, and stayed in bed instead of following Ed downstairs.

He can't keep himself from thinking about the conversation he had with Ed yesterday. He now realizes that he shouldn't have reacted the way he had. In truth, Ed would have loved the chance to forget the past, and now he has. Years ago, Ed had decided to burn their house down as a way to move on. He always thought it best to forget the past and look ahead toward the future. Why should Al worry his older brother just because he wants someone to share the pain of the past with? No... Al doesn't just want a person to share the pain. - He wants someone to share the happiness, too. To share the feeling of triumph at their successful alchemy attempts and the look of love in their mother's eyes when they showed her their achievements. To share the feeling of security they used to have, knowing that their mother would be there when they came back home at the end of the day. She may be dead, but her memory is supposed to live on. If Ed can't remember her, then it's as though a part of her just died all over again. Still, Ed probably would have believed he had cheated Equivalent Exchange, had gained two things for nothing. And Al should make sure his brother knows this.

Al hears a distant door slam shut. "Brother?" he asks himself. He sits up as muffled voices begin to drift into the room.

As Al gets to the bottom of the stairs, he can hear the irritated words, "I'll get it later, something more important came up."

Following that is a shrill yell of, "What do you mean more important?! Edward, that _was_ important!"

Al glances at Winry to see her scowling, then at Ed to see a glare, then back at Winry to see the scowl still in place. He begins to feel a familiar pain in chest and can't keep from coughing. (2)

"Al!" Ed says and hurries to his brother's side.

"Al," Winry says, her eyes widening in worry.

"I'm okay." Al wipes his mouth with his hand and looks toward Ed. "What's going on?"

"You won't believe this," Ed states as he grabs Al's hand.

"Hey, wait! What about my screwdriver?!"

"There's a hardware store about two blocks down the road!" Ed calls, pointing with his thumb as he runs into another room, dragging Al with his other hand.

He shuts the door as Al asks, "What is it, Brother?"

"There's another Philosopher's Stone," Ed says quietly, his eyes narrowed.

Al widens his eyes.

* * *

_"So you're the infamous Psiren."_

_"It depends on who's asking."_

_On one side of the table sat Psiren with her arms and legs crossed. She was wearing her usual black disguise that night at the restaurant. The building actually closed several hours before she arrived, but it was easy to find a way to the fenced-in tables outside. Her teal eyes twinkled in the candlelight, and a smirk was on her face._

_The person opposite her had a smirk playing on her lips, as well. "I would rather my identity remain unknown, if you don't mind."_

_"I can understand that. - As long as I get enough in exchange." Psiren's smile faded as she said, "Now let's get down to business. Do you truly expect me to believe you know Edward Elric?"_

_"You can't be overly cautious, of course," she said with a warm smile. "But it's true. I've taught Ed a lot over the last several years, having been somewhat of a mother-figure to him. But since you need proof... We're close enough for me to know of the offer you've made to him a little over a year ago. My protégé would have been here himself, but I'm afraid he had to go away for awhile. I'll be sure to let him have it when he comes back, though."_

_Psiren frowned at her employer, remaining uncertain of her relationship with Edward.._

_"Still have your doubts, I see," the woman said with a sympathetic smile. "Maybe this will help." She dug around in her pocket until she found a photo. She glanced at it, then placed it on the table. The photo displayed a smiling, nine-year-old Ed._

_Psiren nodded, finally relenting. She unzipped her outfit just enough to pull out a photo of her own. She stared at the picture as she held it between her thumb and index finger, then placed it on the table beside the other one. "And you're sure this is the fabled Philosopher's Stone, right?" the blonde asked, pointing at the close-up of a necklace._

_"What better way to keep it hidden than to display it in a museum? The Elric brothers had never considered the possibility of it being used as jewelry. It was only by chance that I came across it..."_

* * *

"Ed, Al," Gracia calls. She frowns as she looks around the house.

"They went in there a few minutes ago," Winry says with a frown as she points toward a room. She glares at the door, as though it was _it's _fault she didn't get her screwdriver. "Is it okay if I go out for a few minutes, Mrs. Hughes?" Winry asks as she pulls on a thin jacket.

Gracia nods. "Yes, it's fine. Actually, a break will be good for you, Winry. If you keep working as you have, you'll make yourself sick." Gracia notices Winry frowning and sighs. "Just try not to over do it, alright?"

"Okay, Mrs. Hughes."

Gracia smiles before turning toward the door Winry had pointed out. She reaches for the knob, but has second thoughts and decides to knock, first. "Ed, Roy's on the phone. He says he needs to tell you something." The door opens to reveal Ed.

"That's good timing... I need to tell _him_ something, as well."

Gracia leads Ed to the phone and Ed picks it up from the table it was laying on. "General?"

"You have a new mission, Fullmetal."

"Sorry, Mustang, but I'm heading to-"

"You're going to Aquroya to meet up with another State Alchemist."

"What...?"

"The city has stayed afloat for several years through alchemy, but they need a permanent fix. Your mission is to work with the Green Alchemist to solve the problem."

"The _Green_ Alchemist? Who's coming up with these names?! First, there was the Crimson Alchemist, and now _this_? Okay, let me guess. Either he loves money or he's very good at golf." (3)

Ed can hear the amusement in Mustang's voice as the man says, "I guess you'll find out soon enough."

* * *

The pencil wobbles slightly as the train goes over a bump, but it continues writing the letter.

_"Dear Elicia,_

_"I'm writing to you because I feel partly responsible for what happened."_

At Mrs. Hughes' house, Winry puts the tool in her hand down and nods toward Mrs. Hughes and Sheska, who nod back to signal they're ready for the next part of the operation. Winry, at Elicia's feet, picks up the painted piece of cardboard laying on the floor and holds it in front of her chest so Elicia can see it. It's white, with large black letters that ask if Elicia's ready. Elicia nods in reply.

_"Elicia, I have known failure and I have repeated the same taboos time and again, thinking I could fix things. But in reality, nothing can be fixed without yet another price. I realized that after awhile. But several months ago, I forgot the lesson I've learned over the years, and it cost me a chunk of my memory. No matter what, I won't let myself forget again, because I don't want to lose anything else."_

Elicia closes her eyes and holds her breath. A second later, Winry begins to attach the nerves and Elicia's eyes fly open as she screams. Skeska and Mrs. Hughes struggle to hold Elicia down.

_"So the best advice I can give you is to be content with what you still have. Learn from your experiences and don't repeat your mistakes. Be brave and move forward, no matter how painful it may be."_

Sweat pours down Elicia's face, but she'd stopped screaming and now manages a shaky smile.

_"Because, I don't want you to abandon the ones you love and who love you, just to chase after a life that doesn't exist anymore, as I once did."_

--End Chapter--

(1) If you don't remember a character with the name Clara, I'm not gonna say who she is just yet, but there's a lot of hints and I hope it's somewhat clear (especially after mentioning the town...). I watched the episode she's in before typing it, and put in a lot of words she'd say and references to things they did. Anyhow, the reason for this note is to explain Ed's current height. According to the absolute anime website - and the height chart they have, with a lot of characters' heights, Ed was 4'11" in the show. So, Ed grew a few inches before the movie, right? Ed may have had a little bit of false hope when Al said he was taller, since Al remembered him at age 11, but I'm pretty sure Ed had grown a little, since Winry said she estimated how much he'd grow when building the replacement automail for him. I'd say he'd be around five foot, or five foot one or two. Now, my story is after four more years. I'm going to say he's grown about five more inches. I'm not sure how normal that would be, but I'm guessing at it. So, Ed's now 5'6" (Mustang is 5'8", Hawkeye is 5'6", Lust is 5'7", just for a little reference. Alfons is said to be about 5'7" and since I believe that Alphonse should look just like him, since he's now 17, he's also 5'7". Clara's height isn't told, but I took screenshots, and studied their height difference as well as the height chart. She's about as tall as Lust, so she's 5'7" - and that would be with heels, by the way.)

(2) So... I tried to find something in the body that Al could loose without hurting him too much, and something that would cause him to cough blood very so often. Looks like he has Hemoptysis, but I'm not sure what from... Anyone have some ideas of what organs or things he could have lost?

(3) Hmm... "Green" has so many different meanings. (okay, maybe I shouldn't have made this a note... Well I guess I can add that I didn't really like that name at first, but I couldn't think of anything better, and it had so many definitions on dictionary dot com that I decided to use it.)

Hope that last scene wasn't too confusing... I was trying to make it like the end of the series when Winry and Sheska are writing to each other and you see things happening while the letter's being read. I had such trouble with how to word the letter, too. I guess this would be the third or fourth version of it. Hope it makes sense, and if it doesn't, tell me, 'kay? (Also... Anyone have any guesses about who that woman is and what's up with the extra stone?)

I have officially changed Eric's name to Erich (won't really change anything... Just, Erich is supposed to be a German version of the name. His name was only mentioned in the first two chapters, but it's always possible he'll come up again, in a flashback or something.)

It's been so long since I've updated this... Hope you guys are still around... Hmm... Well, I have two new fics to work on, now (although school work was the main cause of the delay in working on this - I haven't worked on the others too much, either). My "Mistaken Identity" fic has one chapter up so far (I think it's better than this fic - It's... kind'a like a puzzle. It's from Ed's point of view, and he's not very reliable). It was going to be a oneshot, but I had decided to break it up into two or three chapters. And I have another oneshot I started but haven't gotten done with, yet. It has a lot to do with the Philosopher's Stone, but I haven't decided on a title yet.

In other news, I need to work on fixing the scene breaks in most of my stories... (goes to take a look at the damage done to this fic)


End file.
